Breathe
by Ferivae
Summary: To keep Hermione alive after being captured, Snape convinces Voldemort she has been spying for him under the pretext that Severus had seduced her. When the most unexpected person has such an impact, sparks fly and fires rage. SSHG
1. Please

**To keep Hermione alive after being captured, Snape convinces Voldemort she has been spying for him under the pretext that Severus had seduced her. When the most unexpected person has such an impact, sparks fly and fires rage. SSHG**

**This fic is following 6th year. Dumbledore and Sirius are alive. Ignores parts of HBP and all of DH.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

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**Chapter 1: Please**

As if in a daze, Hermione stopped in front of the door leading out of her house. She had asked Harry and Lupin to accompany her to say good-bye to her parents, but had asked them to remain outside. She hadn't told Harry she was going to Obliviate her parents, and she didn't want anyone to see.

Hermione unintentionally took much longer to say good-bye that she meant to; to her parents, she was just saying good-bye before returning to school again but Hermione knew this may very well be the last time she saw them. Times were dark and the War was quickly turning for the very worse.

Looking back one last time at her confused and Obliviated but calm parents sitting at their dining table, Hermione opened the door and distractedly stepped out into the ironically bright and beautiful day. Something immediately didn't feel right.

She froze, looking up only to see cruel grey eyes and a spell already fired at her. She could barely hear Lupin and Harry crying frantically for her to move out of the way as they ran toward her from far away. They had apparently gone for a stroll when Hermione took so long with her parents.

The curse hit her and her entire body clenched as unequalled pain tore through her. She hit the ground and felt someone grab her arm and Apparate, and she knew it was not one of her friends.

* * *

Harry and Lupin threw open the door at Grimmauld Place unceremoniously, eliciting an ear-piercing shriek from the portrait of Mrs. Black.

"Damn it, I told everyone to open that door more quietly-" Sirius entered the hallway from the kitchen but froze when he saw their expressions.

"What happened? Where's Hermione?" Sirius asked looking alarmed.

"It's- Where is Dumbledore?" Remus asked as calmly as he could. Mentally he was berating himself. He should have stayed with her.

"In the kitchen," Sirius said and quickly led them in.

As they entered, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Moody, and Snape looked up from their conversation and Snape's disdainful eyes ran over both Harry and Lupin. The group could tell something was wrong instantly. Remus put a calming hand on Harry's shoulder before somberly retelling what had just happened. Dumbledore's eyes darkened and McGonagall's mouth fell open in horror.

"Lucius Malfoy has Hermione?" McGonagall said faintly. Harry seemed unable to speak but nodded his head.

Unbearable silence filled the room.

"Severus…" Dumbledore said softly.

"I will go to Headquarters and see if Lucius has taken her there," Snape said indifferently, referring to Voldemort's new lair.

"Please, Severus," Remus said almost pleading. "Please find her. It was my fault; I should have stayed with while she was dealing with her parents. Please." Though Snape wondered for a second what Lupin meant by being 'dealing with' Hermione's parents, he settled for a condescending sneer.

"Severus," Dumbledore said warningly. Snape gave him a sharp nod and turned on his heal towards the entry.

"Oh dear, lost another one have we?" mocked the voice coming from the portrait of Walburga Black as Severus was about to go out the door. She was referring to Kingsley Shacklebolt's capture only a month earlier. He had escaped with the help of Severus, unbeknownst to the Dark Lord, but not before the damage was done. He had been bedridden upstairs with Madame Pomfrey caring for him constantly for a week.

"Do shut your bloody mouth," Severus said and with a flick of his wand, the curtain was once again covering her before she could start screeching again.

He stepped outside, sighed heavily, and Apparated away.

The kitchen was a very uncomfortable place to be for a few dark moments.

Dumbledore left the room without a word, closely followed by McGonagall and Moody. They way they sharply closed the door behind them did not invite anyone to follow. Sirius moved over to his Godson and placed a comforting hand on his back.

"There is nothing we can do now. We just have to wait for Sev-" Sirius stopped at the look on Harry's face.

"Harry, I know you do not like having to trust Severus. Believe me, Sirius and I understand your distaste for him. But he is loyal to the Order. He will do everything in his power…" Remus trailed off.

Harry rubbed his temples for a moment before shrugging off the comforting hand. He, too, left the room without a word. When Harry had been gone a few moments Remus and Sirius exchanged looks.

"Do you think…do you think Severus will be able to find Hermione before anything happens to her?" Sirius asked in tone that clearly reflected that he dreaded the answer.

In the hallway, Harry leaned closer to the door, wanting to hear what they would say.

There was a dark silence while Remus carefully considered his answer. "After Severus helped Kingsley escape, You-Know-Who will no doubt keep better guard of his prisoners. Even if Severus' cover is still safe it will be hard. Assuming Lucius…takes her directly to Him."

Sirius inhaled sharply. "That's what I am afraid of. He has been known to take liberties with his female prisoners. I'm sure he would take great pride in..." Sirius could not finish the statement.

Harry felt his stomach turn inside-out. He didn't really hear the rest of their short conversation as he slid down the wall, slouching onto the floor. His stomach twisted again as he realized they were going to have to tell the Weasleys when they arrived later that evening.

Harry couldn't help but think this had been his worst birthday to date. Order members had arrived at 11:59pm on Privet Drive the night before and taken him to Grimmauld place quickly and discretely. Harry had thought he couldn't think of a better way to spend his 17th birthday than to be at Grimmauld place with Sirius and Remus, and Hermione and the Weasley's.

But now…

Harry didn't want to think about it.

* * *

Hermione woke up and almost screamed in pain, but made herself stay quiet. Her entire body throbbed in pain in the most unrelenting way, especially between on her chest where she assumed the curse had hit her. A curse. Her memories flooded back to her. Harry and Remus yelling at her. Then pain. Then nothing.

She opened her eyes but could see nothing but a blur.

"Ah, Ms. Granger. So glad you could find the time to awaken." She immediately recognized the snobby, regal voice. Lucius Malfoy.

She opened her mouth to say something-

"Crucio."

She writhed in pain she had never known before. She felt like her soul was being ripped from her body. She began to feel her consciousness fade when it finally relented.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Mudblood. Were you about to say something?" Lucius purred.

Hermione remained silent as she could only sob and gasp for air. Her blurred vision focused enough for her to confirm who her captor was as she saw long platinum-blonde hair.

Hermione did not have long to recover before she felt an incredibly strong hand close on her throat and lift her from the ground into the air.

"Now, what to do with you? The Dark Lord insists that we bring any prisoners to him directly and immediately, but… what an honor it is to have one of the members of the Golden Trio in my house. I think I'd rather play a little first."

Hermione's eyes widened in fear as the senior Malfoy's voice dropped to a husky, threatening whisper. Lucius threw his prize prisoner down. She readied herself to be thrown onto the hard floor, but instead fell into something soft. Her pulse doubled in terror as she realized it was a bed.

She opened her mouth to scream but he quickly flicked his wand and said "Silencio" in a dangerously cold tone.

"Now, don't be mistaken, I will hear you scream in pain and beg. But not until I want you to."

She could feel him crawl onto the bed, and she wanted to fight, to kick and scream, but she felt so weak. She could not help but feel hot tears welling up in her eyes as he got close enough for her to smell his ragged, whiskey-laden breath.

She wondered if anything or anyone was going to save her from this.


	2. Valuable Goods

**Thank you to Madusa and racinggal for the reviews!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

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Hermione could only try to struggle against Lucius' strong grip. She managed to free one of her hands that he had pinned above her head and she dug her nails into the first area of flesh on Lucius she could reach- his face. She felt her index finger scratch against something moist and she quickly realized it was his eye.

Lucius roared and slammed his fist to the side of her face. For the second time that day Hermione saw stars. He was no longer toying with her.

She felt the tip of his wand dig into her neck.

"Try anything else like that, Mudblood, and you will wish you were dead." Hermione couldn't manage a response. She was dazed and could barely move. She felt something warm rolling through her hair and she realized it was blood.

She cursed herself inwardly as she felt hot tears welling up. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing her desperation but she had never felt this helpless or terrified in her life.

She tried to move again but couldn't. Lucius ran his hands roughly up her legs and muttered something about Mudblood whores. When he started pulling her pants down her legs, Hermione's panic reflex kicked in and she jerked her leg, kneeing him in the side.

He directed his fist to her abdomen this time. She coughed and choked on bile. Before he continued he flicked his wand and removed the Silencing Charm so he could hear her cry and scream. As soon as it was lifted she felt a whimper escape her mouth and then he hit her again, hard, in the abdomen. She cried out in pain.

He finished pulling her pants down and, while carefully keeping her legs pinned, he pulled her underwear down to her knees. That was all he needed.

He looked at her thoughtfully before vanishing her top so that she was bare to him. He then flicked his wand again and ropes binded her arms above her head to the bed. He wasn't going to allow a filthy Mudblood to strike him again.

Hermione's mind was going crazy, telling her to bite, kick and scream but she couldn't make her body respond to her commands. When she felt her clothes vanish she whimpered, unable to muster a scream. She felt like this was a nightmare, like it couldn't really be happening. She began to pray that it _was_ just a nightmare.

* * *

Snape arrived at the Death Eater's headquarters and strode quickly inside.

"You look so serious, Sevvie," a woman's voice mocked. Snape spun around to face Bellatrix.

"Bellatrix. I'm afraid I don't have time to enjoy your presence at the moment. I am looking for Lucius, it is quite important," Snape spat the words out to try to dissuade her from her usual games. She seemed to reluctantly take the hint.

"Well as far as I know, he went to do some Mudblood hunting. Hasn't come back yet," she cocked her head to the side smirking at Severus.

He barely nodded at her before turning on his heal and walking back out. The only other place Lucius could be was at his vacation home in the secluded countryside. He knew Lucius wouldn't risk bringing a female prisoner to his manor for his wife to walk in and find what he was doing.

* * *

Hermione couldn't move. Lucius was beginning to disrobe when- BAM!

The door to whatever room they were in flew open and a tall dark figure stood in the doorway. Hermione's vision was still blurry and she couldn't tell who it was, but she was silently praying for a savior.

"Lucius, I do believe that the Dark Lord would not appreciate this very much. You are damaging valuable goods." The voice sounded somewhat familiar but her ears were ringing too much for her to pick it out.

"Oh, please, I was just having a bit of fun. You wouldn't go telling the Lord on me would you? After all, I doubt these … _goods_ need to be delivered in top condition," Lucius sneered as he faced the intruder and pulled his robes back over his shoulders.

"Need I remind you what-"

"No, Severus, you need not remind me of what the Dark Lord has commanded," Lucius drawled. Hermione's heart faltered. Severus? As in Snape? She suddenly became very aware of her nakedness as her initial relief wore off.

There were a few moments of tense silence.

"Very well, Severus. Let's take this Mudblood to Him," Lucius deigned, with contempt clearly in his voice.

Lucius leaned over the bed to untie her hands and as he did he whispered in her ear, "I _will_ finish this later." Hermione hardly felt safer at the thought that she was going to be brought to Voldemort. What was Snape playing at? She couldn't help but feel uneasy even though she knew Snape was working with the Order. Or was he?

As soon as the ropes were gone Lucius backed away from her. "Get up," he snarled. Hermione knew it was in her best interest to do as told, but her body would not comply.

Lucius, already livid at the loss of his prize, had no patience.

"CRUCIO!"

Hermione shrieked in absolute pain. She couldn't take much of this.

"Expelliarmus!" and the pain stopped. Her head was swimming but as she opened her eyes she saw Snape standing over an unarmed and angry Lucius.

"That is quite enough of that," Snape warned before tossing his wand back to Lucius. "I don't believe her mind will do much good to the Dark Lord if you have scrambled it," Snape said coolly.

Lucius, breathing hard in anger and frustration merely snarled.

"Go inform Him of the prisoner you have found and I will make her more…presentable for Him," Snape commanded in a voice that dared Lucius to disagree. Lucius gave the slightest nod of his head before he Apparated away.

Snape looked at Hermione for the first time. She looked horrible. Her face was bruised and bloodied, as were her chest and stomach. He noticed her shift uncomfortably under his gaze. Snape saw she was naked, but it didn't look like Lucius had managed to do anything exceptionally horrendous yet.

He walked cautiously toward the bed, not knowing how she might react. When she didn't move, he silently healed the biggest wounds and Hermione could feel some of the dizziness go away and her vision cleared.

Severus glanced around the room before he leaned in closer to heal her facial wounds, whispering just loud enough for her to hear.

"I cannot simply modify his memories and take you back to Grimmauld Place. The Dark Lord has become increasingly watchful for those kinds of things. I cannot allow you to escape without practically screaming my true loyalties," Snape explained in an unusually low and calm voice. Hermione simply nodded, becoming increasingly uncomfortable with her nakedness. As if reading her mind he flicked his wand and her clothes reappeared on her body. She inwardly sighed in relief.

"I must take you to Him," he began slowly. "I do not know what I will say to him yet, but I will find away to return you safely." Hermione looked into his eyes for the first time. She couldn't help but find comfort in his words. She believed him.


	3. Trust

**Thank you for the reviews! I was quick to update just for you readers! Even for those of you who read but do not review. ;D**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc. If I did, I assure you Snape would not have died.

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"_I must take you to Him," Severus began slowly. "I do not know what I will say to him yet, but I promise I will find away to return you safely." Hermione looked into his eyes for the first time. She couldn't help but find comfort in his words. She believed him._

Severus sighed. He looked her over. She was bruised and looked terrified, but somehow still defiantly proud. He shook his head. Stupid Gryffindor.

"Are you ok?" he asked quietly.

Not breaking eye contact, she nodded.

"So tell me, to sate my curiosity, how did Lucius Malfoy manage to capture you? I heard the panicked version from Potter and Lupin. Why were you separated from them?" he asked, as he finished healing the serious wounds, but left scratches and bruises. It wouldn't please the Dark Lord to see her in _perfect_ condition.

She was quiet a moment. "I was going to my parent's house to say good-bye. But I asked them to wait outside so I could…deal with my parents," she said softly.

Snape raised an eyebrow, urging her to continue. He was still wondering what Lupin had meant earlier in saying when Hermione was _'dealing with'_ with her parents.

Hermione took a deep breath as if it pained her to think about. She wondered if she should even tell Snape. How did she know he was on her side, with the Order? But somehow she felt she should trust him.

"With the way things have been going, with Vold- er, I mean, You-Know-Who and the War…it's just too dangerous for my parents. I would never forgive myself if they were hurt or killed because of my involvement with the Order. And there have been a couple of close calls so, well...I went there to modify their memories. So they would forget me. So they don't know they have a daughter." Hermione's voice began to quiver. "They'll be leaving for their new home in Australia soon. They'll-they'll be happy. And safe," Hermione finished weakly.

Severus didn't say anything. He was, to be honest, surprised. He looked at the young witch in front of him. She gave up her family, her loved ones to keep them safe. Severus shook any sympathetic thoughts from his mind. He needed to focus. He simply nodded in acknowledgement that he had heard her and stood her up.

"Now listen, I need to take you to Him now. I don't know if I'll be able to talk to you again before the Dark Lord does. Whatever he asks you, play along. I'll do my best to guide you."

"With what?" she asked nervously.

He sighed again, pinching the bridge of his noise in annoyance.

"I told you I don't know. But I will think of something to keep you safe," he said shortly, trying to dissuade any further questions. She wasn't reassured and looked like she was about to ask another questions, but she instead bit her lip and looked down.

"I am taking you to His headquarters. I will have to leave you shortly-" Hermione's head snapped back up as she was again filled with panic "-but I will make it very clear no one is to touch you. I need to talk to the Dark Lord before He talks to you. Remember, be calm and go along with what He asks. And being disrespectful or defiant will gain you nothing but a world of hurt with which you are not yet familiar."

His words were like ice as she took them in. His voice was as cold as ever, but she could detect a somewhat worried tone in his voice. That did not comfort her. Again she only nodded.

Without another word, he grabbed her arm and Apparated them to outside a small metal building in a forest she did not recognize. It looked like the entrance to an old military bunker.

Severus stepped forward, dragging Hermione by her arm. She felt her heart jump as with a loud 'GRUNGE' the heavy metal door opened. They stepped inside a cold hallway that did not look like the inside of a bunker; it looked like the inside of a large, grand mansion.

It was then Hermione realized how deep she was in. She was seeing their headquarters. There was no way they would just let her walk away. She would have to trust whatever Severus Snape had planned in his mind. Or rather what he didn't. Did he still not know what he was going to do?

They passed through a room which had several Death Eaters standing around. Their heads all snapped in her direction as they walked through and she heard many angry and excited whispers.

"Oooooh!" Hermione heard a cold voice sneer. "So it's true! Little baby Potter lost his little baby Mudblood!"

Hermione turned around sharply to face Bellatrix Lestrange. Hermione's stomach clenched along with her teeth. At the Ministry of Magic only a little over a year earlier she had seen this monster torture and curse her friends and almost kill Sirius. She had tried to push him through the Curtain, but at the last second Remus cast a spell to pull him back. Where the curtain had briefly touched his back, there was a dark scar.

Hermione felt sad thinking of Sirius and Remus because she was beginning to think she would never see them again. They were the only ones to treat her like she was woman, not a child to be left in the dark. And Remus was the one to comfort her after she had made up her mind about modifying her parents' memories.

Hermione had to employ all of her self-control to not respond in any way. Bellatrix merely smirked and turned to Severus.

"The Dark Lord is very happy indeed about this little gift," Bellatrix smirked again as she mockingly ran a finger down Hermione's cheek, following the trail of a dried tear.

Severus ignored her, and pulled Hermione roughly into another hallway, stopping at a black door. He muttered something Hermione couldn't understand and pulled her through as the door opened. She found herself in a round room that appeared to be an entryway into another room. And she could guess who would be in that other room. Severus let go of her arm but gave her a look that said not to speak. He left her alone in the small room and disappeared through another black door. She heard cold laughter as the door closed.

Left alone with her thoughts for the first time, her mind raced. What was going to happen? Would He interrogate her? Torture her? Was she going to die? Was Severus going to be found out? What was going to happen?

She snapped back to reality when the door to the Voldemort's chambers opened. She looked up expectantly, assuming it was Severus. Her heart paused when she saw the familiar platinum-blond long hair. And that sneer.

"Ah, Ms. Granger, it seems fortune is smiling on us. We are alone yet again while the Dark Lord and Severus speak," he drawled with mock formality.

She staggered backwards into the wall, her eyes wide open. He was tauntingly twirling her wand in his hand. Hermione had wondered where her wand was.

"Now don't get too excited, Mudblood. I have been ordered not to lay a hand or spell upon you until the Lord is done with you. But after that-" he paused as he let his eyes rove over her body. He smirked and left, walking back into the hallway, again leaving her alone in the room.

She thought about trying to run away, but it couldn't be that easy. She would surely be caught, and without Snape's protection the Death Eaters would show no mercy or hesitation…

She was torn from her thoughts as the door to Voldemort's room opened.

"Come in," a cold, unnatural voice commanded. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her uncontrolled heart beat, but to no avail.

She clenched her fists and made herself walk slowly with dignity into the dark chamber.

* * *

Harry was sitting in the kitchen with Sirius and Remus and all of the Weasleys (except Percy who was still pompously loyal to the Ministry of Magic). Ron was sitting next to Harry, but no one said anything. They had been informed of what had happened. None of them had anything to say. None of them knew what to say. The minutes ticked on as the tension grew with the silence.

The door opened and Dumbledore, McGonagall, Moody, and Kingsley entered. Everyone looked at them expectantly.

Dumbledore cleared his throat as said, "We have no news; Severus has not contacted us yet."

If possible, the mood in the room grew even more tense. Harry hung his head. He couldn't believe they were having to trust Hermione's well-being to _Snape_ of all people.

Dumbledore spoke in a gentle, comforting tone. "Please, I have all the faith in the world in Severus. He will find a way."

With that he left followed by all the Order Members. Sirius patted Harry on the back before following as well.

Harry looked at Ron, Ginny, the twins, Bill and Charlie. None of them could find any words worth saying.

At that moment, Crookshanks slinked into the kitchen, just another painful reminder of Hermione's absence.

* * *

Hermione faced Voldemort, who was sitting behind a large wooden desk. Severus was standing at His side, staring intently at Hermione, willing her to remain calm.

"Ms. Hermione Granger," Voldemort said slowly, letting her name roll of his tongue like poisoned honey. She said nothing.

"The brightest witch of you age, I hear." She said nothing.

"A Muggle-born, no less." She said nothing.

"Close friend of Harry Potter?" Hermione flinched at the mention of her best friend.

"No to the last then?" he asked, misinterpreting her reaction as one of disagreement. She almost said something when Severus caught her eye. He shook his head minisculely.

"No," she choked out.

Voldemort turned and looked at Severus with mock surprise.

"Do you hear that, my dear friend? No. So, the 'Golden Trio' as I have heard it called has been broken."

This was a statement, but she was sure he expected an answer. She looked at Snape and he nodded again, the smallest of movements. This must be part of his plan.

"Yes," Hermione said, not sure where this was going.

Voldemort was on his feet and in front of Hermione so quickly she gasped.

"Then why did Lucius claim he saw Potter and the werewolf running to your aid?" he said so quietly she could hardly hear him. It was a very dangerous whisper, one full of threat. How was she supposed to answer that?

"It's okay, my dear, tell him why you were there at your _parents'_," Severus said softly. Did he just call her 'My Dear?' She was sure she heard him wrong. But she heard him slightly emphasize 'parents' so she took what she guessed was his hint. She felt extremely hesitant about revealing anything about her parents to Voldemort, but Severus nodded at her again.

"I-I modified their memory to not remember me at all. It's too dangerous for them-" Hermione began.

Severus was glad she was quick to follow his lead.

"And why is that?" Voldemort demanded, pacing in a circle around Hermione. She felt like she couldn't breathe.

"Please, it is painful for the girl," Severus said in a mock-sympathetic voice. "The Order went so far as to allow her parents to be used as bait when they noticed that Death Eaters were keeping tabs on her parents. The Order is becoming quite desperate, like I told you. She decided they would be safe if she sent them away," Severus said.

"Yes," Hermione quickly agreed, "It was the only way to keep them safe."

She gasped as Voldemort's hand grasped her face.

"I believe I asked you _why _dear Potter and the werewolf were there," he said softy and dangerously, squeezing her chin.

"Please, my Lord. They found out she was going to move her parents before the Order could get their use out of them. They were trying to stop her," Severus cut in.

"Is this true?" Voldemort asked turning back to Hermione. Severus again made the smallest of nods.

"Y-Yes."

"So the Order was gambling your parents' safety and Potter did nothing to help; this is why you found yourself running to Severus' arms these last months?" he asked slyly, obviously gauging her reaction. Her heart stopped, but she did not let it show. Another minute nod from Severus.

"Yes." Severus plan was to say they had been together?

"You realize the information you have been giving him has ended up with me?"

"Yes." This could not be going anywhere good.

"You realize you have been directly betraying the Order?"

"Yes."

"Directly helping me?"

"Y-Yes."

"A Muggle-born such as yourself supplying _me_ with information?"

"Yes." She thought a moment. "Severus was not lying when he said they have become desperate. I cannot support their activities anymore. I didn't know what to do, but Severus found me and showed me I was on the wrong side, that I was simply brain-washed by Dumbledore. Even though I am just a Muggle-born, I wanted to help. Severus said he would keep me safe if I would be loyal to him. And You. So I did as he asked and I have continued my friendship with Harry in order to get as much information as possible." She was sure to use Snape's first name (as she was apparently falling in his arms as of late). She hoped it wasn't too much and she hoped she was reading correctly what Severus' plan was.

Out of the corner of her eye she caught an approving nod from Severus.

"Well!" Voldemort released her face and clapped his hands together. "Severus, you choose your women well," Voldemort's eyes moved up and down Hermione's body. "Well, other than their blood. The same as last time. Such a shame… and I'm sure Lucius will be most disappointed," he added amusedly. He then rounded on Snape.

"I can see your hesitation to bring her to me. You told me you wished to be sure of her loyalty first. However, the next time you find such as asset you will tell me immediately. No more of these-" he waved a hand at Hermione- "secrets."

"Yes, of course, I am sorry My Lord," Snape said, almost pleading. Hermione had never heard Severus Snape apologize, let alone _plead_.

Voldemort turned once again to Hermione, making her stomach twist.

"How can I be assured Harry Potter does not suspect your loyalties?"

"They- they think I'm having trouble dealing with the war. But they have been trying to gain my favor back by keeping me more included in their plans," Hermione felt the lies tumbling out of her mouth with more confidence than she knew she had.

Voldemort stared at her a moment, considering her words. Then a most unnatural smile spread over his face.

"I am only glad to have you," Voldemort stepped forward. He was very close to her face; she could feel his shallow breath on her face. "As long as you remain loyal to me, I will take care of you. And I will see to it that none of my men attempt to find your parents- that is, unless you displease me." Hermione swallowed nervously.

"But I'm sure that will not be a problem."

"No," she breathed.

Voldemort leaned in and pushed a kiss onto Hermione's unsuspecting lips. She knew she should not, could not pull away even though every fiber in her being was telling her to shove him away. Thankfully it was over as quickly as it started. Her analytical mind raced to figure out why he would kiss a 'lowly' Muggle-born. She decided it was a power play.

Voldemort smiled most unnaturally again and then turned to Severus.

"I shall leave you to comfort Ms. Granger," Voldemort said and walked quietly out of the room.

There was dead silence until they heard the second door leading to the hallway close. Severus gave her another look that said to remain silent as he walked to her. She felt apprehensive; Voldemort left Severus to 'comfort' her?

She almost choked when Severus lowered his head to her neck and ran his lips over her jaw line. He then whispered so softly she almost couldn't hear him over her panicking pulse rate.

"He is still watching. He expects proof that I have seduced you."

She froze as she fully realized what he meant.


	4. Response

**Here we go…**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

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_She almost choked when Severus lowered his head to her neck and ran his lips over her jaw line. He then whispered so softly she almost couldn't hear him over her panicking pulse rate._

_"He is still watching. He expects proof that I have seduced you." _

_She froze as she realized what he meant._

Hermione couldn't help but feel her breath catch in her throat as Severus moved one hand to the side of her neck and grazed his teeth along the edge of her ear.

She guessed it was all the adrenaline pounding through her veins, but she couldn't help but react to the sensation. It shot a jolt of electricity shot down her spine, setting all of her skin on fire. It felt good, she had to admit, but it didn't feel…right. He gently squeezed her shoulder as if reassuring her before meeting her lips with his.

For all that was going on, the only thing she could think of was that she had expected his lips to be as cold as his voice and demeanor. But they were amazingly gentle and warm.

She shook her head, trying to clear it, almost breaking the kiss. She knew she needed to keep her head clear because all they were doing was acting. And their performance was being watched. To be honest, she had never been touched or kissed like that…so sensually. She had shared chaste kisses and affectionate hugs before, but nothing like this. And not with and older man who was obviously experienced.

"Are you okay?" Severus asked softly, not overlooking the fact she had pulled back for a moment. She was doing well under the pressure, but she would have to do more.

His eyes met hers for a moment, both trying to read the other. Hermione realized she had moved her hands to his chest without knowing it. And she realized his hands were on her waist. She thought to herself how amazing it is how your body can take over.

Her eyes were fearful but she nodded for him to continue. He resumed the slow, thoughtful kiss as she wondered to herself how far they were going to have to take this right now. So Voldemort thought Severus had seduced her at a time of vulnerability. She chuckled darkly in her head as she supposed Voldemort would expect they had done more than just kiss.

He picked her up by the waist and sat her on the edge of the desk, positioning himself between her legs while deepening the kiss. She couldn't help but let a moan escape her lips when she felt all the heat radiating from his body on her thighs and elsewhere. She knew she should be repulsed. This _was_ Severus Snape. But the rush of adrenaline and her body's signals were making it impossible for her to think straight.

The only clear thought she managed was to wonder what Severus was thinking at the moment.

The sensual trance she was slowly slipping into was broken when the door slammed open. Lord Voldemort stalked quickly into the room. Hermione's fear came back double-fold when she thought maybe they had been found out.

But soon three figures followed Voldemort in, two men holding a third between them who was obviously trying to get away.

"So sorry to interrupt you, but I have a problem that needs dealing with," Voldemort said softly and coldly, his eyes burning upon the man wriggling, trying to escape. Hermione was trying to figure out if she could recognize the struggling figure but realized she probably shouldn't stare.

Snape had quickly detached himself from Hermione who quickly scrambled off the desk.

"If you will, take yourselves to your bedroom to resume your _comforting_," he hissed the last word with delight. Voldemort then leaned in so close that only Severus could hear him say, "Oh, and Bellatrix will check on you two later. I need to know that you have complete control over her."

"Yes, my Lord," Severus breathed. He knew what Voldemort had meant. Bellatrix check in on them to make sure his story checked out. He knew Voldemort would want absolute proof of his successful seduction of the girl. Severus knew there was no way out of this. Severus hadn't felt such a pang of guilt in many years.

Severus, ignoring the other men in the room, gently guided Hermione out of the room with his hand on her waist. Hermione was almost bursting with questions but she knew she should keep quiet until she was sure they were alone. All of this was too weird to be real.

They passed Bellatrix in the hall.

"I'll check in on you here in little bit," she practically sang. "Do make yourself comfortable."

Again, Severus simply ignored her comments and guided Hermione up a stairwell into yet another cold hallway. He opened a door to a bedroom with a fire dancing lowly in a small fireplace. The room was bare except for a chest of drawers, a small table, and of course a bed. A large canopied bed with dark red sheets. Hermione gulped. Severus quickly closed the door then turned to Hermione. He knew it wouldn't be long before Bellatrix was monitoring their activities.

"I'm sure you've surmised what is going on here," Severus said in the most uncharacteristically gentle and pained manner.

Hermione swallowed nervously.

"Y-Yes."

Severus looked down, trying to settle his thoughts. "I am truly sorry. But the story I told him was the only one I thought would work and that He would believe without having you killed."

Hermione said nothing for a moment. "But we are expected to follow through with this- as proof?" she choked the question out.

"Yes."

Hermione took in a sharp breath. She wanted to cry almost, but she knew she had to be strong. Like she was when she drew confidence out of nowhere when talking to Voldemort.

"Ok." It sounded very weak.

"I am very sorry to have to- ask you to do this. If I had thought there was any other way…" he trailed off. Awkward, eye-avoiding silence followed for a few moments.

"I understand. I mean, I trust that you did what you had to, Professor." She bit her lip when she realized she called him 'Professor.' Surely at this point, it was just weird to call him that?

His eyes met hers. Hermione tried to read his face, but couldn't. It looked like he wanted to say something more, but did not. She couldn't believe this was happening; it didn't feel real. She wished it wasn't.

He sighed unhappily. "Bellatrix will be checking in soon."

Hermione bit her lip and nodded. The thought of Bellatrix seeing them disgusted her but she could tell there was no way out of this.

It struck Severus then that this might be her first time. Again he felt strong guilt. But there was no time for that.

He sat her down on the edge of the bed, much like he did with the desk. Again he situated himself between her legs, locking his lips on hers. Much to her surprise, Hermione felt her body responding again. The effect was minimized by her thoughts, however. This was not how she wanted her first time to be…

He soon deepened the kiss, running his tongue at her mouth's crease, asking for entrance which she allowed. His tongue slowly and thoughtfully explored her mouth. She felt like she should do more than just sit there so she experimentally sucked on his tongue, eliciting a rumbling moan much to her surprise. Though this was crazy, and this was Severus Snape, she was curious and intrigued by his reactions.

His hands moved from her waist to her shoulders and began to unbutton her simple blouse. Her throat locked again with nervousness and but he stopped any protests she was about to make with his kiss. She felt cool air on her skin and realized her shirt was off. She allowed him to remove her bra as well, even though she felt overwhelmingly self-conscious.

Hermione's arms uncontrollably snapped to cover her chest. Severus stalled by disrobing himself. His normally billowing robes and dark shirt were soon puddled on the floor.

As Hermione unintentionally watched, she glanced over his body. It was firm and muscular though pale. She could see many scars littered over his body and some injuries that looked more recent.

Severus unintentionally returned the gaze. She still had some cuts and bruises from Lucius. He made a mental note to avoid touching her roughly where the injuries were. He quickly pushed her back into the soft bed as he fumbled with her zipper, then slid her jeans down her legs. Hermione noted the pained expression as he did so. He was having trouble making himself do this.

Severus allowed himself a guiltily quick look at her body and was mildly surprised. He hadn't taken the time to really look at her when they were in Lucius' room. The know-it-all bookworm had a small frame but it was backed up with pleasing curves and nicely proportioned breasts.

He leaned in to kiss her as he unbuckled his pants and finished disrobing. As much as he felt guilty about doing this, his body was beginning to get excited.

Hermione's uneasiness and discomfort remained as things intensified. He moved to crouch over her when the hairs on his neck stood up. That meant Bellatrix was now checking in on them from somewhere in secret, probably using some sort of surveillance spell. He tried to ignore it as he pulled the sheets over them for a pitiful semblance of privacy.

She was now down to her last piece of clothing. Hermione shivered involuntarily as Severus slowly slid her knickers down her legs then onto the floor. He slowly made his way back up to her mouth, only pausing to pay some attention to her breasts, sucking each nipple lightly in his mouth. She moaned this time. Was this really Severus Snape, sinister dungeon master, doing this? No one had ever made her feel like this. She realized a man had never touched her either. Her last active thought before getting caught up in the passion was that Severus Snape was indeed a _man_.

He kissed her, much more passionately and fiercely this time as he slid one hand down to her womanhood, lightly rubbing her swollen nub. She moaned into his mouth, intensifying his arousal greatly. He growled when he felt how wet she was and he couldn't wait any more. His guilt still hovered in his mind, but his body was taking over.

He positioned himself over her, teasing her entrance with the tip of his shaft. She suddenly looked afraid and she pulled him closer, making it look as if she were teasing his ear with her tongue.

"This is- I've never done this before," she whispered embarrassedly. It was as he feared. Knowing he had to ask even more from her, he nuzzled her ear before saying uncomfortably, "It will hurt. But you can't show it. That would be...suspicious," he finished, meeting her eyes. She looked worried and fearful but nodded minutely. She saw a flicker of regret and sorrow in his eyes before she nodded for him to continue.

Having to restrain himself he slowly pushed a little way into her once, twice, preparing her. He realized he would definitely have to hurt her; he would have to break her maiden head and she was also probably very tight. He willed himself to remain in control.

She had her hands on his shoulders and squeezed lightly to give him permission. With that he thrust in as gently as he could manage. She bit the closest thing to her so she wouldn't yell, and that closest thing was his shoulder which only drove him crazier. But he made himself pause. She was so tight he could hardly make himself stop. She squeezed his shoulder again to say it was okay.

He began slow steady movements in her, try to go as slowly and gently as possible. He was relieved when she finally relaxed her muscles a little bit. It would hurt her less now.

Hermione was surprised she had been able to not scream. It had hurt a lot. As she relaxed, the pain faded and was replaced with something much better. As his movement became more rhythmic and he filled her each time, she began instinctively moving her hips up to meet him, pushing him even deeper inside. The first time she did this she heard him moan and he increased his pace out of need.

She became aware of another noise and she realized it was her moaning quietly but she couldn't stifle it even if she wanted to. She could feel pleasure building up within her.

She could feel his skin on hers and he was very large and warm, completely covering her. Despite who this was, she felt very safe and secure under him for a moment.

Severus felt the hairs on his neck relax. Apparently Bellatrix had seen what she needed, but there was no way he could stop now.

As he continued, he was surprised but pleased when she tightened her grip around his back and wrapped her legs around his waist, urging him to increase his vigor. It didn't help his guilt, but he found some solace in the fact that she was feeling pleasure as well. She was pure, untouched; he was guessing that she didn't know what this kind of pleasure was.

He felt himself tighten and he knew he was near. Their movements became quickened from need and desire. He wondered to himself if he was being too rough or intense, but the only feedback he got was her moaning.

He was almost there when suddenly he felt her tighten all around him as waves of pleasure erupted through her body and she cried out which was enough to bring him over the edge as well. He released into her, crying out as he did so.

As they both lay there panting, him still resting inside of her, the guilt overtook him completely. He didn't dare look in her eyes.


	5. In the Face of All This

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc_._

* * *

_As they both lay there panting, him still resting inside of her, the guilt overtook him completely. He didn't dare look in her eyes._

He slowly pulled himself out of her, avoiding her eyes, and rolled to his side. Somewhat luckily for them, the inevitable awkwardness was postponed when Bellatrix slammed the door open, striding into the room.

"I see you're already done," she smirked. Hermione blushed deeply, having forgotten that they were being watched. She grabbed the sheets around her, making sure she was covered. Severus said nothing and merely glared contemptuously at Bellatrix.

"You may go now. But be ready to be summoned. Both of you," she added, quickly looking at the still blushing and wordless Hermione.

"Severus, I never imagined you as the kind of lover who could leave their partner so breathless." And with another smirk she left them alone.

After a few tense seconds, Hermione asked quietly, "Are we alone now?"

"Yes." He wouldn't look at her.

"Is it safe to talk?" she asked quietly. Severus looked around the room, everywhere but at Hermione while casting a few silencing charms around them.

"...Yes."

"Look at me!" Severus was shocked into meeting her eyes. She had an intense look on her face, somewhere between desperation and confusion.

"Listen," she said carefully as if afraid he would give her detention, "I know you did what you had to. I already said I trusted that. So please, just talk to me and look at me. Don't treat me like a child. Please."

Even as the confident-sounding words left Hermione's lips, her mind was spinning.

He thought a moment before shaking his head and regaining his composure.

"You are obviously now unfortunately involved in all of this. And I suppose you have gained that you cannot simply walk away from the Dark Lord so easily," he said slowly.

"Yes." He was surprised. She maintained some poise even in the face of all this.

"The Dark Lord now thinks that you have been working with me, providing me with information. He may expect you to assist me with certain assignments or missions. There is nothing I can do about that."

She nodded, trying to take it all in.

"However, I see it in our best interest to not enlighten the Order of what has happened here. They should only know what they absolutely need to. I lied and convinced the Dark Lord you have been an informant to me. That's it."

"Oh… ok," she said. She tried to imagine the look on Harry or Ron's face if they knew what they just did. For the first time, Hermione felt shame creeping into her conscience.

"And for obvious reasons, if and when we are both called back to his presence, we must keep the act up." Hermione looked down into the sheets and nodded.

"The Dark Lord will not have complete trust in you immediately. He may ask you to do things. Things you won't like." He paused. "I will do my best to dissuade him or help you, but there is a limit to what influence I have over his decisions. You will have to do as he asks if you value your life."

Hermione thought all of it over. "So I should be quick to follow his commands, no hesitation?" she asked.

Severus nodded and looked around uncomfortably.

"This," Severus said waving his hand at the bed. He stopped; he didn't know what to say. He rubbed his face with his hand. "This is something that…This is… I am sorry," he said the last phrase so filled with guilt that Hermione pitied him.

"I understand," Hermione said. Her stomach was in knots.

"I do not have to tell you how dangerous this is. One slip up from either of us and- that's it. You should not have to do this, but I imagined you would rather live in danger than not live at all."

"You imagined correctly," she paused awkwardly. "Thank you. For… saving me, doing what you had to for my life."

Severus said nothing. His only thought was that should not be thanking him for that. He was glad, however, that she picked up on hints and he felt secure that she would know how key discretion was.

"What will happen when we go back to Hogwart's- I mean, I'm assuming You-Know-Who would expect things from me," Hermione wondered timidly.

"I would imagine so. But I cannot. That is still a month away. I find with the Dark Lord, you can only take it one day at a time," Severus said somberly. It was a defeated tone of voice that she had never heard from him before.

There was a few more moments of tense silence before he said, "We should get ready to go. I will take you back to Grimmauld Place. I'm sure they are all anxiously awaiting your return." Hermione's face remained passive.

"I'm assuming you have more questions. There is more I need to discuss with you. But first, I will get you back to your friends. We can talk later," he said, some of the usual formality and coldness returning to his voice. At the moment, Hermione didn't know what to think. She really wanted to get back to...well she didn't know what she wanted to do.

They both looked away from each other as they searched for the rest of their clothing on the floor. When they were both fully dressed, Severus cast a few cleaning and straightening charms on their clothing, making them look unruffled.

Without a word, they left the room together as Severus led them back to the main door. As they passed through the room with the Death Eaters, Hermione heard derisive and cruel laughs aimed at her. Again, she felt shame as she simply looked ahead, following Severus. Word had apparently spread quickly.

Severus located a confused Lucius who realized that Voldemort was letting her go. Severus simply summoned Hermione's wand from Lucius' pocket and guided her the rest of the way out with a protective hand around her waist. She didn't mind as long as it meant no one would bother her.

Once outside the heavy metal door, she realized it was now night time. The warmth from his body next to hers was conflictingly comforting. He grabbed her arm gently, looking at her. She nodded that she was ready and he Apparated them to outside Grimmauld place.

They both paused at the top step. Severus looked at Hermione. She still looked a bit battered and bruised, but it was the look in her eye that really caught his attention. And it made his stomach clench in guilt. Her eyes weren't watering, but the look on her face was worse than if she had been crying. Sensing his eyes she snapped out of it and shook her head, leaving her eyes blank once again.

"Let's go then," she said quietly and as flatly as she could manage.

They opened the door. Hermione's eye flitted to a clock which read 12:32 am.

Whatever chatter there had been in the nearby kitchen immediately stopped when they heard the front door open.

Hermione suddenly stopped. She was trying so hard to be strong, and it worked until she was about to face her friends. Then she would have to admit that this was all real.

The distressed and ashamed look on her face pained Severus, knowing he had caused it. He found his cold demeanor melting, which surprised him. He had been forced to hurt his peers before while doing Voldemort's bidding, but never like this.

In one quick movement, her picked Hermione up bridal style and whispered, "Play along, stay quiet." He hoped that it didn't sound too much like his instructions from earlier, not wanting to distress her more. He kicked the door open before walking in with Hermione in his arms. Everyone who had waited up (which was everyone) was shocked into silence at the sight of a bruised and limp Hermione. Unfortunately, that blessed silence could not last.

A million questions rained down on Severus, each more panicky than the last.

"Is she okay?"

"What happened?"

"Where did you find her?"

"Did that bloody bastard touch her?"

"SILENCE," Severus yelled, even making Hermione wince. He smirked inwardly; he still had it. As much as Severus would have liked to tell himself he was only carrying her in like this to look like a hero, he deep inside knew he did it to protect Hermione from being questioned.

"Now, Ms. Granger is okay. Obviously in the need of some healing, which I _assure_ you I can take care of. However, now would not be the time to barrage her with questions. She needs to rest and does not need any of you pestering her. I brought her in here to show you she is indeed alive, but I will now take her to her room and let her rest. I expect you all to respect this," Severus said shortly.

Hermione raised her head enough to look at everyone. She was quite well enough physically to answer all their questions if they demanded it, and Severus knew that. But she was very grateful that he was saving her from that experience. For now.

The room was quiet as they all took his words in. Severus took the opportunity of their silence to turn around to carry her upstairs. He made it halfway up the stairs, Hermione clinging to his broad shoulders and neck when they heard hurried footsteps behind them. Turning to see who it was, Hermione's heart clenched again.

"Lupin, I thought I made it clear-" Severus began angrily

"Made it clear that you are going to care of her all by yourself? You want us to wait downstairs while you carry her up here all alone with no explanation to us?" Hermione was shocked by his aggressiveness. It must be near the full moon.

Severus sighed most condescendingly. "I assure you, I pose no threat to her. The concern for her safety is funny coming from you, though. Now, who was there when she was abducted?" Severus asked smoothly.

Remus' face lit up in anger like she had never seen before. He had his hand on his wand and would have sent one hell of a hex at Severus had Hermione not been conveniently between them. Hermione felt a slight suspicion that it was for that fact that Severus felt safe in goading Remus.

Severus continued, "Now Remus, I would advise you against rising to anger. It's near the full moon, is it not? It would be a shame if any more accidents happened around you."

Hermione was annoyed at how Severus was treating Remus, and she had been squeezing his shoulder as hard as she could to signal him to stop. But Severus had ignored her silent pleas. Apparently squeezing his shoulder didn't work here.

Hermione's eyes met Remus' for a moment. She could tell that Severus' words had cut deep. He looked wracked with guilt. 'You're not the only one,' Hermione though to herself.

She tried to give Remus an apologetic look for Severus' comments, but she could tell it did not register with him. Severus turned around and continued carrying Hermione up the stairs, leaving a wordless and heavily emotional Remus in the hall.

"Which room is yours?" Severus asked softly without the coldness he had directed at Remus.

"Second on the left."

Repositioning Hermione in his arms, he opened the door. She wondered why he didn't just let her down at this point. But she was too emotionally and physically exhausted to care. He closed the door behind them before moving to the bed and laying her down gently. She stared at him, torn between gratefulness and anger. He had saved her from the questions, but he had no right to talk to Remus like that. It wasn't his fault. She decided to just remain silent, not trusting her tongue when she was so stressed.

He looked at her a moment, seeing her eyes burning with conflicting emotions.

"I'll be right back," he said, letting some coolness creep back in his voice.

And as Severus left to get some more efficient healing potions, Hermione was left alone to her thoughts.

* * *

Everyone in the kitchen was silent as Severus stalked out with Hermione in his arms, clinging around his neck.

Before anyone spoke, Remus suddenly uttered a throaty growl before following quickly. Everyone remained silent, just relieved with the fact that she was alive. They heard heated voices near the stairs, though they couldn't hear distinct words. They heard silence again and heard someone walk angrily to the front door and slam it as they left. They all presumed that was Remus.

"Don't worry, it's just near his 'time of the month'," Sirius attempted to joke before he walked out to follow Remus.

The small chuckles were enough to break the tension. Everyone released the breath they had been holding. Mrs. Weasley began to cry.

"Oh, Mum," Ginny sighed as all the redheads moved to comfort her.

Harry remained silent, still angry at himself for letting this happen. And angry for having to get Snape to help. And angry that Snape had strode in to the room with a superior smirk on his mouth and a battered Hermione in his arms.

Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Well, we know that Ms. Granger is safe and in good hands."

Harry and a couple of others scoffed. Dumbledore ignored this and continued, "And I do agree with Severus. She needs to heal and rest. We know she is fine, and I believe we should leave the rest until morning. Perhaps everyone should go to bed and get some rest," he finished, emphasizing the last phrase.

Slowly, grumbling, most everyone filed out. Harry was one of the last to leave, but Dumbledore gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder as Tonks and Kingsley steered him forcefully out of the room.

This left Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Moody in the kitchen.

"So, what do you think Albus?" McGonagall asked worriedly.

"I have faith in Severus. But I also feel Ms. Granger has been through a lot tonight," Dumbledore said sadly.

"I would bloody well say so! You saw the look in her eyes. She's been traumatized," Moody said gruffly.

"I trust Severus to fix her up. Though I am anxious to find out what happened, I believe I will take my own advice and let her rest and leave questions for her for the morning, though I will go ahead and get Severus' report," Dumbledore said a little more lightly.

After exchanging one last worried look, they all left, leaving those staying at Grimmauld Place to lie awake with a conflicting mixture of relief and worry.

* * *

"Remus, please! Stop and talk to me. Mooney!" Sirius pleaded.

The use of his nickname finally caught Remus' attention. He sighed and stopped his rapid pace, causing Sirius to collide with him.

"Oomph! Now please Remus, I shouldn't even be out here! Dumbledore is working on my pardon, but I'm still technically a wanted man!" Sirius said exasperatedly, looking around. They were alone in the street, but Sirius still felt paranoid.

Remus let out a slow breath.

"Yes, of course. I'm sorry. I just- snapped. I don't know why. It's just- I let this happen to her. And to have Severus of all people rescue her…" Remus rambled. Sirius looked at him sympathetically.

"I know, Mooney, I know."

"I hate that she and Harry and the others are being affected by this war. I will be glad when I will be nearby this year. But you know Severus will love rubbing her capture in my face! He will not let me forget," Remus exclaimed.

He was indeed going back as the D.A.D.A. professor this year. Dumbledore had smoothed things over with the Ministry of Magic and the School Board and had gotten Remus his post back for Defense Against the Dark Arts. Mostly it was because no one else wanted the job; the supposed curse on the job was widely known.

"You don't need to take this all so personally though. Hermione is a smart young lady and knows you would do anything to protect her and that you feel horrible," Sirius reasoned.

"She is a bright witch. But I hate what she is being put through because of the war. She shouldn't have to deal with all of this," Remus worried miserably.

"So this 'bright witch' as you call her, can't handle the danger? Well I admit, if there is one witch who doesn't know how to handle danger, it is Hermione!" Sirius said sarcastically.

"Please, Padfoot, don't mess with me, not tonight. I'm tired and the moon is putting me on edge," Remus pleaded. He rubbed his face with his hands tiredly. He just wanted to see Harry and Hermione and the others live the normal lives they deserved.

"Very well Mooney, be a Hippogriff's arse. Let's go back inside then," Sirius said jokingly as they turned around to walk back.

* * *

Hermione hadn't moved since Severus left. She watched the clock. It had been 10 minutes. In that time, she heard people slowly move back to their rooms, thankfully none of them tried to visit her.

Hermione's stomach filled with uncomfortable butterflies. She felt ashamed. It hit her full force. What would Harry or Ron or anyone say if they knew what had just happened? They wouldn't look at her the same way again.

A hot tear rolled down her cheek as Severus returned with his impeccable timing and a few bottles of potion.


	6. That Seems Fair

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

_A hot tear rolled down her cheek as Severus returned with his impeccable timing and a couple of bottles of potion._

He walked in briskly, looking agitated. After he handed her the two bottles, his hand shot to his grip his left forearm.

"The Dark Lord is summoning me. He will only be expecting me," he added quickly when he saw the alarmed look on her face. "I will be back by morning. Apply the green one to all of your wounds, and then drink the clear one. It will ease the pain and help you sleep. I would prefer you do not talk to anyone about tonight until I return in the morning."

Hermione felt a pang of annoyance, but understood.

"Ok," she said softly, looking in his eyes; his face was completely passive. He turned on his heal to leave, with his signature billowing robes. "Be safe," she added softly, not sure if he could even hear her. He paused at the door for a brief moment, but continued without looking back, shutting the door sharply behind him.

She looked at the potions but knew she wanted to take a bath before even thinking about going to bed. Her head was throbbing and spinning. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, supporting her weight with her arms on the bed. She slowly took a step, letting go of the bed. She felt okay. But as she stepped with her other foot, her head had such a painful throb that she stumbled and fell.

'Please don't let anyone have heard me,' Hermione pleaded silently, not wanting to see anyone. But no luck. She heard steps in the hall and a knock on the door.

"Hermione?" a voice she recognized as Remus asked softly.

"Fuck," Hermione whispered. She didn't want to see anyone. She decided to ignore him.

"Hermione? Are you okay? I- I heard a crash," Remus asked. He sounded so genuinely concerned and gentle. Hermione's resolve crumbled.

"Yeah, I- I fell down…" she trailed off, trying to stand up. Remus opened the door and walked to where she was on the floor. Silently, he helped her to her feet.

"Remus…I'm so sorry for what Snape said back there. He had no right."

"It's quite alright, you should not feel the need to apologize. I was, ah, a bit aggressive shall we say?" he said lightly as he helped her sit in a chair. She met his eyes and could see worry as he looked over her various injuries.

"I'm okay, I just haven't used his healing potions yet," she said with a weak smile.

He returned it, but then his face got serious.

"Hermione, what happened tonight?" he asked gravely. Hermione half-wished she could tell him, but was grateful she couldn't at the same time.

"Well, I- I would tell you but Snape asked me to wait until morning, if you don't mind," she said sheepishly. Remus didn't look convinced, but didn't push. She had never been so grateful for his understanding nature.

"Just know if you ever need anything, you can come to me," he said with a smile, though it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Always, Remus. Thank you for your concern," she said sincerely.

He looked at her for a moment and sighed.

"Goodnight, Hermione. Please do feel better," he said softly as he left the room.

"Goodnight, Remus. Thank you."

* * *

Before Hermione knew it, three weeks had passed since that night. There was only one week until they all headed back to Hogwarts. She headed down to breakfast from her bedroom at Grimmauld Place. All her wounds were completely healed and she felt physically back to 100%.

As she walked in the kitchen, Sirius greeted her with a warm smile and ushered her into a seat next to him. The only other ones in the kitchen were Kingsley and Mrs. Weasley, who were looking at her concernedly. She was used to it at this point.

When Severus had returned from being summoned that night, he had come upstairs with Remus, who refused to let Severus come and get her by himself, to wake her up from her wonderfully deep sleep. They brought her downstairs without a word to the library where most of the Order members awaited to hear what happened. Harry, Ron, and Ginny were not allowed in because they were still not technically members yet. Severus had explained with few details how he managed to get her away from Lucius Malfoy, but had to take her to Voldemort where Severus had convinced the Dark Lord that she would act as a spy for him and give information to Severus.

That had not been received well. Hermione cringed to think how everyone would act if they knew what really happened.

"She is too young!"

"This is too dangerous!"

"There had to be some other way."

"She can't be expected to take any part in this!"

Hermione and Severus had exchanged looks and quietly let everyone rant until they were done. It felt weird, but when they exchanged looks, they both understood what the other was thinking. They had shared a moment. It wasn't exactly friendly, but it was mutual. Hermione found it oddly comforting. Someone out there half-way knew where her head was at.

Sirius broke Hermione out of her reverie with his infectious laugh as he finished telling a story on Remus back in the old days. Hermione smiled and continued eating. Sirius looked disappointed that she hadn't found it as funny as he, but like everyone else, he assumed she was still just a bit off after being tortured and almost raped by Lucius Malfoy.

Remus came in looking as if he had just rolled out of bed with his clothes wrinkled and his hair ruffled, but smiled warmly at Hermione all the same. She returned it with a bit more heart. Remus sat down across from her and Sirius and began to chat with them.

It was then that Severus swept into the kitchen. Hermione felt her stomach clinch a little. She hadn't really seen him since the meeting with the Order. She didn't know if he was avoiding her because he felt awkward or because he felt it would be safer for her. And they had never really talked about what happened. Hermione was almost able to convince herself it never _did_ happen. But unexpectedly being in the same room as him again brought her back to reality.

She expected him to ignore her and to just talk to Kingsley or something, but it was quite the opposite. Ignoring everyone else in the room, Severus walked directly to Hermione.

"Might I have a word with you? In private?" he asked impatiently, as if he were in a hurry, ignoring the look he got from Kingsley who was convinced Severus had failed to do all he could to help Hermione.

Before Hermione could respond, as her breath had caught in her chest, Kingsley cut in.

"I'm sure whatever you need to discuss with Hermione is a matter the Order can be aware of," he said coldly.

Severus snapped his eyes away from Hermione who still hadn't moved.

"I assure you, if I wanted to discuss this with the whole Order I would. But I am asking to speak to her in private," Severus said through gritted teeth. Kingsley took a deep breath as if he were about to start into a rant.

"Kingsley, it's okay," Hermione said standing up. "Honestly," she added. Kingsley still looked unhappy. Mrs. Weasley and Sirius looked like they wanted to say something but were unsure. Remus just looked at Hermione with concern. She smiled at all of them reassuringly.

"Excellent," Severus said sarcastically and grabbed Hermione by her arm, leading her forcefully from the room. Hermione wondered if he was angry at her for some reason. She hadn't discussed that night with anyone, though Harry, Ron and Ginny had been asking relentlessly.

He pulled her upstairs to her room and shut the door as he put a silencing charm around the room. He then turned to her and looked her over, making her stomach clench again.

"How are you wounds? Are they all healed?" he asked though his voice lacked warmth.

"Yes. Yes, they're fine, thank you," she said awkwardly. He said nothing.

"Well, I don't think you dragged me up here to ask how I am. So what is it?" Her voice sounded sharper than she intended. An odd expression shot across his face for a split second but disappeared before Hermione could analyze it. He looked like he was about to speak but still said nothing. Hermione began to feel uncomfortable. And then faintly annoyed. He hadn't even talked to her for weeks, and left her in the dark. Then she got mad.

"What is it with you? I mean, you have hardly looked at me these last three weeks! Why are you avoiding me? I know this is awkward, but the least you can do after what I've gone through is to keep me informed!" Hermione was surprised all that came out. She was breathing hard, trying to regain her calm.

He then looked at her as if sizing her up, trying to determine something. He finally spoke.

"The Dark Lord has summoned us. He has a mission. He considers it a test of loyalty," he said, ignoring her outburst though he looked faintly annoyed.

"What? I mean, what's the mission?" she asked after a moment. She decided it was better to leave her anger until later if it was this important.

"What? You don't want me to defend myself for my actions these last weeks? I thought you were quite angry with me," he said somewhat mockingly. She couldn't believe he was acting like the same old dungeon bat.

"Well, I find life-and-death marginally more important than you acting like a _twat_," she shot back sarcastically, but then gasped a little at what she had just said.

Instead of looking angry like she expected, an amused smirk danced on his lips.

"Well, I'm glad you can put your emotions aside for more important things. Even more important than me acting like a _twat_," he repeated her words, making her blush slightly.

"So, you were just _messing _with me? I think I have proved, if nothing else, that I can override my emotions to do what is needed. I think you're well aware of that," she said coldly, hinting for the first time what had happened between them. The second it came out, Hermione regretted how it sounded.

His amused smirk disappeared, but he didn't look angry either. She couldn't place the expression on his face. Wounded? Shocked? Ashamed? She couldn't tell. He quickly recovered though.

"Very well," he said coldly, "We are leaving here shortly. We are to travel to Romania where the Dark Lord has arranged a meeting for us with some leaders of an order of vampires. He wishes us to try to recruit them to His cause." **(A/N: this is NOT going to turn into a vampire story)**

Hermione's mouth fell open in surprise. Vampires were incredibly strong and dangerous, and not known for their benevolence toward other creatures or even their own kind.

"Judging from your expression, you are aware this is quite dangerous. Which is why you will allow me to do all the talking, but you will still have to accompany me. The Dark Lord wishes to know you will do whatever I or He asks," he finished. Hermione didn't speak for a few moments.

"What about everyone else?" she gestured indistinctly to the rest of the house. "Surely they won't be okay with this, let alone allow me to go."

"No, surely they won't. I have discussed this with Albus, and though he does not like it at all, he has entrusted you in my hands for this," he said flatly. "Discretion is key. Dumbledore has not told anyone. A letter with an explanation will appear to the rest of the Order after we have left. We will not announce our departure," he said as if explaining a lesson plan. Any other time, she would have found his tone patronizing, but her mind was elsewhere. This was dangerous. Very dangerous. "Do you have a problem with this?" he asked.

"I do not like lying to them," she said as steadily as she could. "But I see why we have to."

"Good. And as for why I have avoided you these last weeks, I thought it would be safer for you if I was not around you while be summoned, or else he may ask me to bring you," he said matter-of-factly. But then his voice softened. "And I thought my presence may be…stressful," he finished in a strained voice.

Hermione said nothing. She was surprised. He was concerned? Hermione assumed nothing could ever faze_ the_ Severus Snape. And here he was, looking uncomfortable as he awaited a response.

"Well, I appreciate the sentiment," she began slowly, "but I would still prefer you be straight with me. I know you find me difficult to say the least, but I would hope by now you could at least see that I am not a little girl. I can handle the truth, and I would prefer it." He considered her words carefully.

"That seems fair," he conceded. Hermione gaped at him. Did she just…win?

"Thank you," she said cautiously, as if she was afraid he would take it back.

Their eyes were locked on each other. Hermione felt like they were sizing each other up. She got an odd tingle up her spine. She was having a personal moment with Severus Snape, for Merlin's sake. She was sure it was rare to see him like this.

"So, what do I need to take with me? What do I need to know?" she asked finally.

"Bring nothing but your wand, but do not keep it out. You would not want to offend them. And you know as much as I know when I say that we are to go there and tell them exactly what Voldemort told me to say. Then we await their response and leave. As soon as possible," he explained.

"How long will we be there?"

"My hope is for them to respond immediately, so we can leave and be back tonight," he said. "One last thought. You may want to change into something that shows as little skin as possible. They can sense your pulse, and if they have to look at the skin they know they can easily tear into…let's just say vampires aren't known for self-control," he said, glancing at her bare neck and shoulders in her tank top.

Her stomach clenched again as he looked over her.

"Right," she muttered, turning around to her dresser to pull out a pair of jeans and a long-sleeve shirt; she made sure it was one that would mostly cover her neck. She turned around with her clothes in hand. He still hadn't left. "Um, I need to change."

"I'll wait for you downstairs at the door. Remember, don't alert anyone to the fact that you're leaving," Severus said as he left her room, quietly heading downstairs.

* * *

**I have gotten questions, and this is NOT going to turn into a vampire story. Just a mission.**


	7. Laughter

**Thank you all so much for the reviews! I enjoy and appreciate them a lot. If anyone is wondering when there will be more Severus/Hermione action, I **_**am**_** trying to make this realistic, so they're not just going to start jumping each other out of nowhere. Enjoy :)**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

"_I'll wait for you downstairs at the door. Remember, don't alert anyone to the fact that you're leaving," Severus said as he left her room, quietly heading downstairs._

As she quickly pulled on her clothing, Hermione's mind was racing. She absent-mindedly put her wand in its holder. It was three simple leather straps that wrapped around her forearm with a thin sleeve to hold her wand. It was a contraption of her creation to carry her wand around when it couldn't be seen, perfect for under long sleeves or robes (she would only have to think 'Accio wand' and for it to shoot into her hand).

She took a moment to collect herself. She would be kidding herself if she said the last three weeks hadn't been hell. In one day she had lost her parents and then something else so precious. She tried to act normal for everyone else; no one except Dumbledore and Remus knew about her erasing her parents' memories, and only Severus knew all that plus what really happened that night at Voldemort's headquarters.

She couldn't wrap her head around it all; somehow it still didn't seem real. She didn't know how to act around Severus. Should she ever talk about it? Or should she just go with it and play the part around Voldemort and never bring it up otherwise?

And Hermione hated herself a little bit for enjoying it. She had never felt pleasure like that before and she had let her body take over. Was it wrong?

Hermione tried to shake her head of all these thoughts. Before she opened her door, she cast a silencing charm down the hallway and stairs so no one could hear her footsteps. Severus seemed serious about not letting anyone know they were leaving.

Even with the silencing charm, she walked as quietly as she could down to the entryway where she came upon a sight she did not expect.

Severus was leaning against a wall, but without his usual poise and confidence. He was slouched over and had his face buried in his hands. He wasn't crying or anything but looked tormented. She realized he hadn't heard her walk up and she felt like she was seeing something she shouldn't. She was debating whether to announce her presence or leave when his head snapped up to meet her eyes.

Hermione was taken aback and didn't know how to react. The feeling in the entryway was very tense.

"Ms. Granger, were you planning on making your presence known, or were you enjoying yourself too much?" his voice snapped so icily it made Hermione flinch.

"I- I…" Hermione didn't know what to say. So she decided to turn it on him. "What is wrong?" she asked in an impartial voice.

"I don't know what you are talking about," he said, straightening himself up to his normal impressive height, towering over her.

Hermione glared. "I do believe only a minute ago you agreed to truthfulness with me," she said calmly.

He considered her for a moment, still obviously fuming at being caught in a moment weakness. Hermione was sure he was not often caught like that.

He was silent for a few moments, trying to read her eyes. She was not judging him, nor was she pitying him. She was simply curious and genuinely asking what was wrong. Something in him broke. Between the Order and Voldemort, when people spoke to him it was generally only to obtain information or to accuse him of something. He could not remember the last time someone honestly asked about him, other than maybe Dumbledore.

She raised on eyebrow at him. She was tired of his mood swings and games. If she was being forced into working with him, the least she wanted was for him to be straight with her and stop trying to keep her in the dark. And they had already been over that.

"We have never discussed that night," he said, surprising her. "And…I regret it greatly. What I had to do to you, what I took from you. I cannot undo it, but it…" he was about to say that it haunted him, but he couldn't say it. "…but it is hard to come to terms with what I've done. I can already see it has changed you," he finished grimly. Her eyes looked dark and exhausted. She was not the bright-eyed bookworm know-it-all he remembered.

Hermione's mouth had opened slightly in surprise. "Well, believe it or not, it was not you who changed me. Perhaps you just haven't looked in a while. I doubt you know half the things I have been through because of this war, especially in the last couple of years," she said in a low voice. He said nothing, only looking at her in surprise this time. When he still said nothing, she again turned it on him.

"Is that what it's like all the time to be a double-spy?" she asked. It was his turn again to open his mouth in surprise. When he didn't answer she continued, "I mean, I'm guessing that wasn't the first time you had to do something you regretted. I can only imagine other things you've been asked or told to do, and you can't tell anyone. It…must be horrible for no one to know or understand. I mean, people treat you with such hostility, but…I bet they have no idea what you do for them, or the Order, or whatever," she stopped when she realized she was rambling.

Before Severus had a chance to answer, they heard footsteps headed toward the entryway. Hermione and Severus looked at each other for a moment before Snape grabbed her arm and quickly pulled her outside where he could Apparate them away. Kingsley opened the door just as they were gone with a POP. He stared into the empty sidewalk for a few long moments wondering if he was just being paranoid.

"Kingsley, a letter just appeared for us! It's-It's Hermione and Severus!" Mrs. Weasley yelled from the kitchen. Kingsley remained staring into the street for a moment before going back in. He had a bad feeling.

* * *

The world rematerialized around Hermione and Severus released his grip on her arm when he was sure she found her balance. Though they lad left Grimmauld place in daylight, the forest they were in was dark, and unnaturally so.

She looked at him for a second. "Are we in Romania?" she asked, deciding to drop what she had asked before they had to make a hasty departure. She felt reassured that was the right way to go when she saw relief on his face for a split-second.

"Yes. The vampires appreciate their privacy, so we will have to walk a short ways to get to out meeting place. It's less than a mile away. We could Apparate directly there, but it is not good to surprise a vampire," he said while looking around, making sure it was safe. "This way," he said, walking past Hermione toward an overgrown path. A few moments later, Hermione almost collided with his backside as he suddenly stopped and turned to face her.

"And yes, that's what it's like to be in my position. And what was wrong is I fear you will learn that for yourself all too soon," he said in a deadly serious tone, but not looking directly at her. "The Dark Lord will not forget about you. He will want to use you and you won't be able to tell anyone of what he asks of you and what you actually have to do. You will know more than you ever wanted to know, and you won't be able to do anything with it. You will find a new meaning of isolation."

Hermione felt a knot form in her chest.

"I understand, and I understand what you had to do. And I would rather be alive and having to deal with all this than dead. It is just…hard to understand everything all at once. But I trust you," she said, not knowing what exactly she was trying to say. "Dumbledore is sure of you, and though I don't always understand what he does, I trust his belief in you. And I'm not exactly isolated right? I mean there's you-"

"Please, Hermione," he said gravely, catching her attention especially with the use of her first name, "I understand your raw bravery, but there is something you must understand." He paused and took a deep breath. "I told you I will do everything to help you and keep you safe, but I cannot…I cannot guarantee you won't get hurt. I can't guarantee that I can always help you. I can't even guarantee that you will survive all of this. And I know I have brought you into this because I believed you wanted to live. But it does not make anything easy or good. And even Dumbledore does not know everything, especially about the position we are in with the Dark Lord."

"You think I haven't been able to surmise all this? I know how deep I'm in, even if I don't understand what it might entail specifically. I know this is more than dangerous. I know I could die. But I could have died at Malfoy's hands that night, right? But now I have this chance to do more. I wouldn't have exactly chosen this of my free will, but this is bigger than my life. This is for the Order and for Harry, a cause which I will gladly die for," she said unwaveringly, locking her eyes on Severus.

Severus looked at her again with his mouth open slightly in surprise, something that was happening far too much for his liking. He had expected her to maybe burst into tears or break down at what he had to say, but instead she handed him this speech that was basically saying 'duh.' He felt a small bit grateful for the fact that of all the people who might have landed in this same situation, he ended up working with someone who understood exactly his feelings on the matter. What he was doing was about more than him which is why he was willing to sacrifice everything; his time, his freedom, his very life. But he still didn't like it.

"I suppose I am glad to hear it. You need that point-of-view to do this kind of work you have been forced into. But please, don't be too eager to sacrifice everything. That is no way to live," he said somberly. She looked at him in a way that told him she knew he was talking about himself.

"Do you regret it?" she asked.

"…No." She nodded at him in acknowledgement before he turned around and led her to the path. Nothing else was said.

They walked in silence for a several minutes. It was almost pitch black and Hermione could barely see Severus' outline in front of her let alone the path. He didn't take out his wand to cast a light, and Hermione remembered what he said about using magic and not insulting vampires. She couldn't imagine what might happen.

"We're here," Severus said. Hermione looked up. There was a haze in the air in front of them that looked unnatural. "It's somewhat like the magic that hides Hogwarts: Unplottable and Unfindable to all but those invited or forced here. But no Apparition wards. Something to remember if things go badly," he explained. He held out his hand to her while she was wondering exactly where _here_ was. She took his hand lightly.

He walked into the haze, pulling Hermione through with him. Hermione almost gasped when she took in the sight once they passed through the charmed haze that concealed the place. They were just outside an iron gate that rose several feet above their heads that set a perimeter to an impressive but sinister looking mansion. The first sounds she could hear were the sounds of screaming, some in joy and pleasure and some in pain and agony. She couldn't imagine what kinds of acts of depravity were occurring within the walls.

The gates opened and Severus, still not letting go of her hand, led her inside and the gates closed behind them loudly. Hermione swallowed in nervousness. She moved her hand out of his and up the crook of his arm. He let her arm stay there. They both felt it best to stick close.

There was a loud CRACK and a man materialized before them. There was no mistaking the pale skin and ethereal allure. He was a vampire.

"Welcome," he said. Severus bowed his head to him and Hermione followed suit.

"I will take you to Erik now. He is waiting for you." And with that, he turned around and led them to the large wooden doors. As they stepped inside, Hermione felt as nervous as when she had been led into Voldemort's headquarters. Maybe even more so. They walked down a grand hallway adorned with deep red curtains and other similarly colored trimmings. Their footsteps echoed loudly, but not enough to cover the sounds of the activities Hermione couldn't even imagine happening elsewhere in the mansion. There was so much screaming and moaning and noise. Vampires were known for their particular talent for torture.

It was a short trip between the front doors and the first main room where Erik, the head of this particular clan, was waiting, but it felt like miles. As they stepped in the room they found Erik sitting in a chair, staring at them intensely. They stopped in the middle of the room and the man who led them in left, leaving the three alone.

Severus bowed his head as he did before and again Hermione followed his lead.

"Severus Snape? And a young distraction," Erik said, moving his eyes from Severus to Hermione. His voice was surprisingly warm and inviting for a creature like him. Hermione tried to remind herself that vampires used glamouring to make themselves appeal to any humans around them. Even as Hermione was consciously reminding herself of how dangerous these creatures were, she was getting lost in Erik's eyes. She quickly broke eye contact and looked somewhere over his shoulder.

Erik laughed. "Severus Snape, I must admit you certainly have high standards for your whores. She is the first human girl to be able to look away in a very long time." Severus tensed but said nothing. Hermione couldn't help but feel redness creep into her cheeks as she was called Severus Snape's whore. As she felt blood rush to her cheeks, she also noticed how quick Erik was to stare hungrily at her.

"But we are not here to discuss that are we?" Erik continued, his eyes still glued to Hermione. "State what you came here to state," he commanded leaving no room for argument.

Severus removed Hermione's arm from his which was difficult seeing as she had been gripping so tightly she had cut off the blood supply. It was Severus' turn to notice how quickly Erik was to stare at him as he felt blood flow back into his arm.

"We are here on behalf of the wizard Dark Lord," Severus said as he raised his left sleeve carefully revealing the Dark Mark. "He wishes to form an alliance, an understanding between us if you will. If you agree to fight with Him, he will give you all the humans you desire," Snape said smoothly and diplomatically and recovered his Dark Mark. Hermione's stomach churned at the thought of giving innocent Muggles over to vampires.

There were a few moments of dead silence. Then Erik laughed in a way that sucked the little warmth out of the room.

"Surely he has not sent you with the same message he sent last time? I am getting the feeling he does not take my word seriously when I say things such as to not waste any more of my time. I have already told him, I have no interest. I have all the power to take all the humans I want, and I have no interest in an alliance, as I clearly stated to the last messenger he sent," Erik's voice lost the glamour and he sounded cruel and cold. He stood up so quickly his movements were a blur. He was now a couple of feet in front of them. "Perhaps I need to make my opinion more clear."

Severus took a protective step in front of Hermione. She got a jolt of adrenaline as the phrase 'killing the messenger' crossed her mind.

Before either could say anything, there were multiple simultaneous CRACKS as at least five others appeared facing Severus with Hermione at his back. Erik laughed as he saw the panic on their faces. "Leave me the girl. She smells good," Erik sneered in a way that sickeningly reminded Hermione of Lucius Malfoy. She concentrated on the words '_accio wand'_ in her mind and her wand shot to her hand from her sleeve.

She was about to shoot the strongest wide-range curse she could think of when Severus grabbed her with amazing strength and threw her to the side of the room away from the vampires as they pounced. Hermione landed hard, hitting her head. She managed to look up in time to see Severus firing spells faster than she could register. But one of the vampires, a female, managed to get around the flurry of curses and hexes and drew a dagger. Hermione tried to move so she could either warn him or cast a protective spell, but she had hit her head hard and could barely see straight.

Hermione's mind cleared of the injury but went dizzy with adrenaline as she saw the female vampire sink the dagger into Severus' abdomen then throw him like a rag doll into a book case. Hermione could hear a sickening _crack_ as he hit it and heavy books fell all around him and on him. The only sound that was worse was his strangled cry of pain.

Hermione was on her feet in a second. The only spell she could think of was one not meant to be used on humans, but her next thought was that these things _weren't_ human.

"Reducto!" Hermione cried the spell meant to blast through solid objects. It made solid contact with the vampire and it tore through her side and into the wall. The other vampires screamed. One of the others jumped on the unconscious and profusely bleeding Severus and tore through all the flesh he could reveal with his impossibly strong hands. He met the same fate as the female as Hermione rushed forward. The second Reducto curse she cast at him was strong enough to blast the vampire back through the wall. Hermione grabbed Severus and his wand, and as she concentrated on Apparating, one of their fists collided with her face with incredible force, but she ignored the pain and focused on where she was Apparating to.

The dark cold room and the vampires dissolved around her as she transported herself and Severus away. As she clung to Severus body she felt blood running down her arm and she honestly couldn't tell whose it was. Her mind was still swimming with pain and adrenaline, but she knew she had to concentrate fully. Apparition was difficult enough with injuries, but a Side-Along Apparition with someone in worse shape was even trickier. She doubted whether either of them could survive splinching in their conditions.

The world rematerialized around her. She looked up and saw the metal door to what looked like an old military bunker.

She decided to bring them back to Voldemort's headquarters. She knew she just couldn't bring them back to Grimmauld Place. She could only imagine the Order's reaction to them coming back in their condition after leaving without telling. They would forbid her from ever going on a mission again, and then Severus would be as good as dead with Voldemort. And the Dark Lord's lair was the only other place she could take them.

She looked down at Severus. She almost thought it was too late and that he was dead until he coughed up some blood without re-awakening. He was a bloody mess and one of his legs was bent in an unnatural angle. She wanted to start crying. That would have been her if he hadn't thrown her out of the way.

She slowly got to her unsteady feet and looked over Severus again. It was then she noticed some of the books from the book case had travelled with them. Most were in tatters much to Hermione's reluctant dismay (she shouldn't be caring about books at a time like this) but there was one undamaged book that caught her eye. It seemed to glow darkly in the most sinister way. She couldn't help but pick it up. From her years of Ancient Runes, she could decipher the title as "Immortalirituals." She instantly recalled: _from a Taoist perspective, life is finite, and wishing to live beyond one's natural span is not with the flow of nature. Beyond this, there is a major issue with immortality. Even a spell to extend life may not be entirely good, especially if it draws life energy from another to sustain the spell._ This was a book dealing with immortality.

It was then that the metal door flew open, shaking Hermione from her short academic reverie. Hermione couldn't do anything. With Severus unconscious, she had no protection from the Death Eaters. But it wasn't just any Death Eater greeting her and Severus' arrival. It was Voldemort himself flanked with Bellatrix and Yaxley.

The Dark Lord's eyes roamed over the bloody and broken Severus up to the bloody and battered Hermione, but then his eyes landed on the book Hermione had in her hands. His face changed from a foul-tempered scowl to a surprised and delighted grin.

"Ms. Granger, so glad you made it back," he said smoothly, not taking his eyes from the book.

Hermione looked to Severus as if he could help her in his near-death and unconscious state. She merely looked back to Voldemort, her mouth and eyes wide in uncertainty and fear.

"I- I didn't do this. I mean, they attacked us, and-" Hermione spluttered out, noting the amused grin on Voldemort's face. He was toying with her. He held up a hand, stopping her.

"Dear girl, I am aware. I hope you can understand that I needed to make sure you were both willing to go on such a dangerous mission for me. And I would know if you were strong enough to survive this, you are strong enough to serve me," he explained amusedly.

"You- you knew they would try to kill us?" Hermione asked, horrified.

Bellatrix and Yaxley laughed. Hermione ignored them and looked at Severus. He was bleeding out and would die if he didn't get some help soon.

"She is stupid for someone allegedly known as the brightest witch of her age," Bellatrix sneered. Voldemort held up his hand to Bellatrix, silencing her.

"Now, all this I planned for. But what is that?" Voldemort asked, looking to the book of dark magic in Hermione's hands. She paused. The look in his eyes told Hermione he wanted it. And if Voldemort was interested in a book of dark magic, it could not be good. But she knew she could not refuse to give it to him. She just survived vampires, she wasn't about to die for this impossible situation, so she decided to play it in her favor.

"There was a bookcase in the vampire's mansion. I saw this and it caught my attention. I- I thought it could serve some purpose. I was able to conclude it has some very powerful old magic in it," Hermione said, trying to sound as sincere as possible.

"_Legilimens,"_ she heard Voldemort whisper and suddenly he was in her mind. He watched the scene in the vampire's mansion, and Hermione relaxed when she realized she didn't need to alter anything for him to see. He watched them talk to Erik, then the attack, and then as Hermione blasted the vampires away and grabbed Severus and, unknowingly to Hermione at the time, the book as she Apparated them away.

He exited her mind and laughed.

"You used a Reducto spell on them?" He asked, obviously surprised and amused.

"Yes. It was the only thing I could think of," Hermione said quickly, looking to the dying Severus again.

Voldemort walked forward to Hermione and held out a hand. Hermione put the book in it even though her mind was screaming that Voldemort's hand was the last place she should put an ancient book of dark magic. Voldemort laughed again.

"I appreciate the determination, but the hand was for you, my dear," Voldemort said silkily. Hermione didn't like it. Voldemort moved the book to somewhere in his robes and held out his hand again. Hermione tentatively took it with her own. He was about to lead her away when she stopped and looked at Severus again. Voldemort laughed for a third time, and it was unnerving to Hermione.

"You do care for him, don't you?" he asked thoughtfully. Hermione didn't know how to answer. With a flick of Voldemort's wand, he levitated Severus' broken body and led an increasingly nervous Hermione inside followed by a dissatisfied looking Bellatrix and Yaxley. Apparently they had been hoping for a punishment of some sort for Hermione and Severus.


	8. Shakespeare

**Thank you for the reviews! They really do inspire me to write. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, I hope you enjoy it too! Thank you again to all of you who are so encouraging.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

"_You do care for him, don't you?" he asked thoughtfully. Hermione didn't know how to answer. With a flick of Voldemort's wand, he levitated Severus' broken body and led an increasingly nervous Hermione inside followed by a dissatisfied looking Bellatrix and Yaxley. Apparently they had been hoping for a punishment of some sort for Hermione and Severus._

Severus was beginning to stir. He wasn't conscious yet; he was in that in-between world where dreams still seem real and you don't remember reality quite yet. He enjoyed it immensely because experience told him that he would never wake up to anything good.

His eyes opened. He couldn't immediately tell exactly where he was. It wasn't uncommon for him to go on mission for the Dark Lord and wake up injured somewhere unfamiliar and not know how he got there. In fact it amused him when he was waking up like this to imagine where in the world he might be. Not long ago, he had awoken in a muddy ditch in Ireland. And there was that time he woke up in a dark cave hundreds of miles from anywhere he knew. But he had long ago learned to not stress over figuring out how he ended up wherever he was.

He blinked again and saw the room he was in more clearly. He was in a room and not in some ditch. A definite improvement. As he looked to his right he recognized the decorations. He was in a room in the Dark Lord's headquarters, but how he had ended up there he had no idea. He racked his brain trying to remember what mission he had been on when he looked to his left and almost jumped out of the bed. There was a woman lying in the bed next to him with her back turned towards him.

She woke up with his startled movements and sat up to turn and look at him. It was Hermione Granger. And with that recognition, the last bit of blissful ignorance vanished from his mind as he remembered everything from the last few weeks. And then he remembered the mission they had been on.

She looked horrible. There was blood matted in her hair and some dried on her face. Her eyes had circles under them like she hadn't had any rest.

"Hermione, are you okay? You're hurt," he finally managed to say. He tried to sit up, but as he did he became very aware of a searing pain in his stomach.

"Don't try to move yet. And, uh, I'm- I'm fine. I just haven't cleaned the blood up but all my injuries are healed. But you shouldn't be worried about my injuries," she said, looking at him with concern. She also looked very worried. Her dark and serious eyes looked far too old for her. Waiting for his response, Hermione performed a few quick cleaning spells to deal with the blood in her clothes and hair. She had fallen into a restless sleep after she knew Severus would live.

Severus regained some of his composure when he was fully awake.

"How did we end up here? I don't remember anything except getting attacked. Why are we here? Is…everything okay?" Severus asked.

Hermione bit her lip and looked more worried.

"Well, you threw me out of the way when they attacked. You fought them like crazy, but one of them got to you with a dagger and threw you across the room. I managed to make my way to you and Apparate us away. I figured we couldn't go back to the Order in our state. You know how they would react," she said looking at him for confirmation. He nodded. They would certainly react badly.

"And, well, this is the only other place I could think to go," she continued and she looked more and more worried.

"What else?" he asked. Her worry was starting to worry him. She cast a careful _Muffliato_ charm just in case anyone was listening in on them.

"Well it seems I accidentally brought something back with us. A book that was on the shelf they threw you against," she said and bit her lip again.

"What was it?"

"Um, well it was titled _Immortalirituals_, or at least that was the best I could translate it. It was definitely dark magic. And Vol- I mean, the Dark Lord came outside to find us and saw the book and looked excited. I gave it to him because I really didn't have a choice. But I have a feeling it's a bad book for Him to have," she finished looking anxious.

Severus sighed in relief. He was worried it was worse.

"The book which you gave Him, which is not your fault, is a book he has been looking for. It's very rare, only three of four copies are in existence. It concerns dark magic having to do with necromancy. For obvious reasons, he is interested in cheating death," he said. Hermione's eyes widened. Severus quickly continued, "But don't worry. He has been searching for it for many years and Dumbledore knew of it. Dumbledore has actually examined a copy and concluded that Voldemort can't find any usefulness in the magic described. It won't get him any closer to immortality."

With the last words relief washed over Hermione and she felt like she could breathe for the first time since they left.

"So what happened? In more detail," he inquired gently.

"Um, I Apparated us back, we were both injured. When I knew I had no choice but to give him the book, I played it so he thought I brought it to him on purpose, saying I thought he might be able to use it. He- was very pleased. He brought us both inside an brought us up to this room. He was talking to me but there was a commotion out in the hallway. Apparently some Death Eaters got in a fight, so He healed me up a bit, which surprised me, and left me some potions and things to take care of you. That was hours ago. It's nighttime, almost midnight. He hasn't been back yet," Hermione said. She was still just overwhelmingly relieved she had not given Voldemort a weapon.

"You managed a Side-Along Apparition when we were both injured?" he asked, impressed. She nodded, but did not recognize the implied compliment.

"It was the only thing I could think to do!" she cried, worried he was unhappy with the risk she took.

"No, Hermione. You did- very good," he said slowly, not sure how to reassure her. Hermione's eyes met his. She still looked concerned and stressed, but some of the apprehension was gone. She sighed and looked down.

"You almost died. I was almost sure you were dead for a moment," she said softly. Severus was yet again stunned; why would she be upset if he should die? But before he could comprehend it, Hermione continued on, "Like I said, he fixed me up a bit and left me to take care of you, but the potions he gave me only did so much. I've done what I can for your injuries, but you still need some other help." She swallowed and looked at the wound on his abdomen. It was still weeping blood into the bandage. His broken leg was fixed but still aching.

"Thank you, Hermione," he said. He was angry that he had left her alone to deal with the vampires and then the Dark lord.

"Are you unhappy with me? You look upset," Hermione said. Her face was still drawn tight with all the stress and uncertainty.

"No, you did everything right. Better than I would have thought. I just regret that you had to deal with all that by yourself because I got injured," he finished. He tried to keep his voice even. He was uncomfortable with how personal this was. And he was uncomfortable with the fact that he felt indebted to her.

Hermione didn't say anything. He had an immense and overwhelming sense of duty. She could understand that. She looked at him a moment before she reached to check his injury. As her hand reached the wrapping on his stomach, he grabbed her wrist. She jumped.

"I- I just need to check it," she said breathlessly. He had reacted in such a way because he had just realized he was bare-chested and naked from the hips up. His pants were rolled up on his left leg where he assumed she had healed his leg. He also realized his arms were bare which meant she could see his Dark Mark. That was what bothered him the most. He didn't let anyone see it except when he had to, such as when he showed it to Erik, proving who his master was.

Severus let go of her wrist and clapped it over his left forearm. She looked at him uncertainly.

As she redressed the wound she ventured to say, "I've already seen it. The Mark, I mean. You don't have to hide it from me."

He looked at her but said nothing. He was torn between relief and annoyance. Who was she to think he was hiding from her? Then he realized he was doing just that. Still saying nothing, he let his arms fall back to his side. As Hermione finished dressing the wound, she looked at his left arm and at the tattoo. He visibly tensed.

"I'm sorry I make you uncomfortable by looking at it. I just-"she stopped and looked away. She picked up his wand from the bedside table and handed it to him.

"You just what?" he asked. His voice was a little more cutting than he intended and she bit her lip again.

"I think He was going to give me one," she said looking down with a frown.

"Why do you believe that? Tell me everything he said," Severus said with urgency. He didn't like this.

"Well, he brought us upstairs but left Bellatrix and Yaxley, who were there when we returned, downstairs so it was just us. He put you on the bed and stopped the bleeding for a moment so we could talk. He told me He was very pleased with what I had done. Fighting the vampires, bringing him the book, bringing you back here when I could have gone back to the Order; he was pleased with all of it. He said he is willing to disregard my blood status because of my loyalty and tell all of his followers to do the same so I will be safe here, and that's when he asked if I was truly loyal to Him and not just you. Of course, I had to say yes, so He took my left arm and told me I deserved His mark despite being Muggle-born," Hermione explained.

"Why didn't he?" Severus was still concerned over this.

"Well I mentioned it may be a bit suspicious if Hermione Granger, well known Muggle-Born and friend of Harry Potter, was caught with a Dark Mark," she said looking distant. "It was the only thing I could think of. I mean, it makes sense, so I don't think He thought anything of me arguing the point. That was when the commotion out in the hallway began. He- he kissed my hand and dropped my arm. He told me we can leave when we like, so I was just waiting for you to wake up."

Severus let out a long, deep sigh. "Hermione, you did very well. Not many people can stay calm and level-headed like that under so much pressure. It's…impressive for one so inexperienced with all of this," Severus managed to choke out. He was not in the practice of handing out compliments, but after what she went through he felt she deserved some appreciation. She had saved his life.

Hermione didn't say anything, but looked back to his Dark Mark.

"Can I look at it?" she asked timidly. She felt she may be crossing a line, but she had never gotten a good look at one. Her curiosity was eating at her.

Severus clinched his jaw as he thought, but surprisingly he lifted his left arm toward her. He looked away, knowing the look of horror and disgust would follow, as it always did. His eyes snapped back to her when he felt a cold fingertip trace the snake through the skull. Her face was not contorted in disgust; rather, she looked intrigued as she traced the entire tattoo.

"Does it always hurt when he summons you?" she asked softly, afraid he would pull back if she spoke to loud.

"Always." Hermione nodded with a sympathetic look on her face as she withdrew her hand. She turned away toward the bedside table and handed him his shirt.

"Do you think you can handle a Side-Along Apparition back to the Order?" she asked as he started to pull his shirt on.

"Ye-" he began but stopped in a hiss of pain as he twisted his body to pull the shirt on. Hermione walked around to his side of the bed. He shied away from her, but she only sighed.

"Just let me help you," she said in a tired voice. She wasn't forceful or judgmental. She just wanted to help him and get them back safely. It was Severus' turn to sigh as he stopped pulling back from her.

With nimble fingers, she quickly but carefully got his arms in the shirt and buttoned up the front. It occurred to her that he could probably button it up himself, but he made no move to stop her. Perhaps he enjoyed having someone who actually genuinely wanted to help him. Just as she finished the top button, they heard someone approaching the door.

Their eyes met for a brief second before Severus placed a hand around the back of her head and drew her into a passionate kiss. It took Hermione by so much surprise that she wasn't ready for it and she unintentionally melted into his arms. Maybe that had been his plan.

The door opened and Bellatrix walked in to see Severus and Hermione in their own world, or so it looked.

"Oh, you're awake," she said in mock-concern, though there was a tinge of disappointment, "and already playing."

Hermione pulled back from Severus but he kept a protective arm around her waist and pulled her close to him between his legswhere he sat on the edge of the bed. Whether it was protective or possessive Hermione couldn't decide, but either way but she couldn't help but appreciate how strong his arms felt around her or how warm he was next to her. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so safe or secure. She was about to chastise herself for thinking like that, but the she remembered she was almost past the point of awkwardness with Severus Snape.

"Can we help you?" Severus asked coldly.

"Oh please Severus, don't speak for her. The Dark Lord made it clear she is to be considered…_equal_ now. After just one mission," she said in a voice that was riddled with bitterness and…jealousy? Hermione remembered hearing the rumors about the nature of Voldemort's and Bellatrix's relationship. At first Hermione had doubted it, but then again…

"All the same, what do you want?"

"The Lord sent me to see if you were awake. He wants you to leave as soon as you can so as not to arouse the suspicion of the Order," she stated, clearly enjoying telling them to get out.

Without a word, Severus stood up and Hermione noticed that he showed no signs of being in pain though he had to be. He kept his arm around her waist as they picked up their wands and silently exited the room with Bellatrix following. As they walked downstairs heading toward the door, Hermione heard the babble of several Death Eaters congregated in the hallway. They rounded the corner and they all fell silent, looking at Severus and Hermione. Several vehement whispers broke out, but this time Hermione did not react. She was too tired to care.

They were almost out to the door when someone roughly grabbed Hermione's arm, wrenching her out of Severus' grasp. It was none other than Lucius Malfoy.

He pushed her into a stone pillar while he pointed his wand at Severus who paused.

Lucius held Hermione against the pillar with a hand around her throat and a knee between her legs pushing up into her crotch painfully. He leaned forward and whispered into Hermione's ear, "Mark my words, Mudblood. I don't know what you are up to but I know you are loyal to the Potter brat. I will put an end to this. And I haven't forgotten about my other promise," he finished, dropping his wand hand to run along her thigh. She could smell fire-whiskey on his breath.

Severus took the opportunity of Lucius' lowered wand hand to step forward, but a cold voice stopped him.

"Lucius," Voldemort hissed as he entered the room. Lucius immediately dropped his grip on Hermione and stepped away from her.

"Is there any particular reason you have disregarded my words about the girl?" he hissed in a low and dangerously soft voice.

"No, my master, I- I only worry for your safety. I feel she is still alleged to-"

"Do you feel I am unable to determine these things for myself?"

"No, my Lord, I-"

"SILENCE!"

Hermione had never seen Lucius Malfoy cringe like that. A cruel smile then began to dance on Voldemort's lips. Hermione knew that couldn't be good.

"Hermione, my dear, come here," Voldemort said smoothly. Hermione managed to notice a miniscule nod from Severus before she walked to stand by Voldemort's side.

"Now, Lucius was the one who captured you. He was under commands to bring any prisoners directly here. Did he bring you directly here?"

Hermione froze but then shook her head.

"And just now, he threatened you?"

Hermione nodded.

"Well, my dear, it seems has haw wronged you more than once. Perhaps he should learn some_ humility _at your hands," Voldemort suggested happily. "You know the Cruciatus curse, how to do it?" Hermione's entire body froze, but she willed herself to stay calm and to leave a passive look on her face. She slowly nodded and she saw Severus shift where he was standing. Voldemort stepped away from her, leaving her a clear view of an angry and apprehensive looking Lucius who was backed against the pillar he had her against.

Even if this was Lucius Malfoy, she didn't want to torture him. But did she have a choice? If she didn't, it wouldn't please Voldemort and his unusual kindness to her may disappear. It would put her and Severus both in danger. She guessed this was another test to make sure she would do as she was commanded.

She quickly thought of what she knew about the Cruciatus Curse. She knew the words, but she knew you also really have to mean it. Hermione quickly thought about when Lucius had captured her. How he had hit her, humiliated her…what he had meant to do to her. Hermione allowed her anger to surface, even as she was thinking how wrong this was to do. She remembered how he had stripped her down, then how he had started to pull her knickers down…

"Crucio," Hermione said coldly. She could hear a few gasps as Lucius hit the floor screaming. Hermione couldn't help but feel her eyes widen. She was doing this to him. She could feel the power connecting her to him, the power she had over him, and she didn't like it. She counted to 10 and released it. Lucius was a writhing heap of gasps and cries of pain.

Hermione lowered her wand but kept her face passive. Voldemort chuckled.

"Very good. Everyone will do well to remember this. You may go," he directed the last words to Hermione and Severus who both quickly obliged. As they exited the large metal door, she could still hear Lucius recovering and gasping for breath while Voldemort laughed.

They stood there a moment before Hermione remembered she needed to Apparate them. Severus was still in no condition to try. She absently grabbed his arm, unaware of the shocked and worried look he directed at her.

Once she had them back to the sidewalk outside Grimmauld Place, Hermione couldn't hold it in anymore. She burst into tears. She dropped to her face to her hands, sobbing and gasping just like Lucius had. She couldn't believe she had done that. She had caused him such pain. She hated it. She didn't want to do that. There's a reason they're called Unforgivable Curses. Anyone with a conscience can't just perform one of them without remorse.

She hated that she was crying in front of Severus Snape of all people, but she couldn't help it. And as she was crying, all the emotions from the last weeks she had never expressed started coming out to. The trauma from sending her parents away, almost getting raped, having sex with Snape, having to lie to everyone, getting attacked by vampires, thinking Severus was dead, having to torture Lucius; everything came out.

She heard Severus mutter a silencing spell around them. She was surprised when she felt Severus turn to face her and put a hesitant hand on her back. The Professor in Severus was screaming that she was his student and that this was inappropriate. He silently scoffed at his conscience. He had gone beyond inappropriate with Hermione Granger. And he wished he could take it all back. But he couldn't.

"I was wondering when you were finally going to let it all get to you," he said softly, unconsciously pulling her against his chest. At first she tensed at the contact, but soon relaxed.

"What?" she managed to gasp out between sobs. She didn't even fight his embrace. It was more comforting than anything at this moment. She couldn't tell her friends or Remus or her parents about anything. Severus was the only one who knew what she had been through. She didn't like to admit it, but now they were dependent on each other at some level.

"I've asked about how you've been the last weeks. It seems that you are just fine, to everyone else. I was wondering when you were finally going to let it all get to you. You have to at some point, it will drive you mad," he said with a touch of resentment in his voice. He glanced around to see of anyone could see them. No one was there, and no one had come to the door. Hopefully they were all asleep.

Hermione didn't have time to respond when they jumped as a clock tower a few blocks away chimed. It was midnight. Hermione's sobs slowly stopped with the chimes and they both became aware they were still standing together. But neither moved. Maybe their brains were muddled with pain and sleeplessness. Maybe they were both enjoying the moment of human connection. Or maybe they were both too tired to care to think about who they were touching.

As the last chime sounded, they could hear movement from within Grimmauld Place and some muffles voices.

"If they are not back by now, there is no use in waiting up. I trust Severus and Hermione to take good care of each other. Now let's not insult our trust in them. To bed!" they heard Dumbledore decree unbelievably cheerfully.

For the first time since they made it back, Severus and Hermione's eyes met. They both seemed to draw the same conclusion and neither moved to announce their presence to those inside. They heard slow and reluctant footsteps head to the stairs inside the door.

"Perhaps it would be better to not alert them to our return. That is, unless you are ready to tell them all that has gone on today?" Severus asked with a bitterness that told Hermione it would be a long night indeed if they went in. Hermione stepped back and Severus quickly retracted his comforting arm as if she had stung him. Whatever moment of tenderness that had passed between them was over. He had already pulled his passive sneer back on his face as he looked to the door.

"It would be better, but you still need some attention to your wounds," Hermione reasoned. She almost laughed at how weak her voice sounded, still cracking with raw emotion. Severus looked down at his abdomen as if remembering 'oh yeah, I was stabbed.'

He sighed deeply, not liking what he was about to offer but he felt it was better than facing the Order's interrogation tonight.

"I would suggest waiting to go inside until they are asleep for sure. I have a good collection of healing potions in my house. We could go there for a short while to heal and allow them ample time to fall asleep. If this is okay with you, of course," he suggested carefully. He wasn't sure how the woman before him would react to an invitation to his house. In fact, he didn't know how he felt about it himself.

Hermione considered him for a moment. "Yes, thank you," she said sincerely. She wanted to face the Order even less than Severus at the moment. She looked horrible and she was tired and still looked like she had been crying.

"Since you are unfamiliar with Spinner's End and I am not quite fit to attempt Apparition myself, we should perhaps use a portkey," he said, mumbling to himself while looking around for an object to charm.

"But isn't using a portkey even harder on the body than Apparition? Couldn't it hurt you more?" Hermione ventured to ask carefully.

"Well, Ms. Granger, if you would rather go inside," he said coldly. His eyes flashed. She wondered if she had somehow insulted him.

"Well, Professor, no I would not," she said mocking his words and being sure to address him as formally as he had addressed her. "I was thinking if you can use Legilimency to put the image of your house or yard in my mind, I could Apparate us," she said equally coldly.

A look of surprise flitted across his features for fraction of a second which affirmed Hermione's belief that he hadn't thought of this. He made a 'hmph' noise before entering her mind unannounced. It took him a moment to sort out the rush of thoughts and memories from her mind before he could feed her the image of his house. Though he would never admit it, the memories from the last few weeks that he glimpsed made his stomach turn.

Hermione kicked him out of her mind the second she had studied the image of his house long enough. He hissed at the sharp and sudden disconnection. He glared at her a moment.

"I suppose I should be glad you have learned Occlumency proficiently. The Dark Lord has no doubt invaded your mind?" he questioned, suddenly interested. He hadn't thought of how Hermione would be able to fend of Voldemort's mental invasions.

"Yes. Dumbledore has found it worthwhile to teach me. And it has been worthwhile indeed. I was able to show the Dark Lord only what I wanted him to see," Hermione said confidently but then she worried she sounded pompous.

"Good," Severus said shortly. Hermione held her out her hand for Severus to take, which he did. She concentrated on the image of his house for a moment before with a 'pop' they were gone.

They appeared onto an overgrown sidewalk outside a rickety, sinister looking house. Hermione would expect no less of Severus Snape. Severus moved his hand out of hers and moved it to the small of her back where he pushed her along with him into the house.

"I will ask you not to touch anything," he said, sounding bored. He pushed her through the entry way and through a doorway that opened into a sitting room. He then left through another doorway she assumed led to his personal lab. She took a cursory glance around and her eyes landed on a wall lined with bookshelves. There were so many books. Hermione allowed herself a smirk when she couldn't help but feel excited.

Careful to heed Severus' words, she did not touch anything but she walked along the wall and looked over all the titles. She was surprised to see some non-wizarding works. There were a few works on Philosophy and Ethics, and even some Muggle classics. She never thought Snape any less than an intellectual, so she supposed she shouldn't be too surprised.

As she came to the last shelf, Severus re-entered the room with a few vials of potion. His eyes flashed in her direction. Before he had a chance make a comment, Hermione held her hands up in the air.

"I haven't touched a thing. Just admiring," she said, not taking her eyes off of the books.

"Hmm," he acknowledged before shoving a vial in her hand. "Even if you're healed, that will make sure of it and help any pain," he said shortly before drinking the vials he had for himself. Hermione nodded in gratitude and drank hers. She was amused at the thought that even a couple of months ago she would never unquestioningly drink anything Severus gave her.

"You like Shakespeare?" she asked when she looked at the three shelves devoted solely to Shakespeare.

"It would appear so," he said more harshly than he intended. Her face flinched a bit at his tone. Severus sighed. "Doesn't your name come from _The Winter's Tale_?" he asked in an attempt to make up for his harshness.

She looked at him, surprised that he noticed. "Yes. Though I don't know how to feel about my parents naming me for a woman who dies of pure grief," she added as an afterthought.

"I would wonder why they did not name you Beatrice or Katherine if they were looking to Shakespeare for inspiration," he muttered absently, drinking the last vial.

He looked up when he realized Hermione was staring at him incredulously. He realized he just paid her a compliment of sorts; both women in question were beautiful, intelligent, and quick.

"Both women with sharp tongues who couldn't control them," he followed up quickly, trying to sound harsh. Hermione looked back to the shelf to hide a smile. She didn't believe his cover-up.

He then quickly offered to let her read any of his books while they waited a little bit before returning to Grimmauld Place. The implied compliment was soon forgotten as Hermione quickly scanned the shelves for any magical volumes she had never seen before.

Her eyes settles on an old, thick volume called _Munimentum_. It was a book of protective spells that covered defenses against anything from jinxes to hexes to even the nastiest of curses. She has already gently pulled it from the shelf and settles into a frumpy armchair before she remembered to thank Severus. He made another 'hmph' noise as he left to bust himself in his lab.

After about an hour and a half, Severus reappeared in the sitting room where Hermione was still engrossed in her reading.

"Perhaps we can return now," he said. Hermione looked a little disappointed as she closed the book and stood to put the wonderful book back, but Severus stopped her.

"You've chosen a wise book to study. You may borrow it," he said, watching in slight amusement as her features lit up immediately, "and I hope I do not have to tell you to treat it carefully and return it to me in the condition it is now." Hermione shook her head and gently hugged the book to her chest.

"How are your injuries?" she asked timidly, scanning his body quickly. He showed no signs of being in pain, but he was very capable of hiding it.

"Healed," he said simply before ushering her out. She had a feeling he was relieved once he had her out of his house. She guessed he never had many visitors, and it made him uncomfortable.

Once outside, he held out his hand for her to take. She was thinking about asking if he was sure he was okay to Apparate, but she chose to bite her tongue. Severus seemed pleased with this. She tucked the large book under one of her arms as she placed her hand in his. With a 'pop' they were back outside Grimmauld Place.

"Quietly," he muttered unnecessarily as they opened the door. Hermione rolled her eyes when she knew he couldn't see. They crept past Mrs. Black's portrait without waking her, and it seemed everyone had gone to bed.

Severus followed Hermione up the stairs and he broke off when he reached the room reserved for him when he had to stay at the Order's headquarters. Hermione paused and looked back.

"Thank you. Goodnight," she whispered genuinely.

He nodded sharply. "And to you, Hermione," he said before disappearing into his room. Hermione couldn't help the small smile that danced on her lips.

Once she made it back to her room, she silently showered and got into bed, glad they made it in without being questioned. She fell asleep smiling at the thought that Severus Snape, dungeon bat and Potions master extraordinaire, never known to speak a kind word to anyone, had compared her to some of Shakespeare's finest women.

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**Reviews are very much appreciated! Let me know what you think.**


	9. Assistance

**Thank you for the reviews!**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc. (Nor do I own the Reese's brand or the Hershey's company. Or a lot of other things. In fact, it would be easier to say what I _do_ own. Which isn't much. But… I digress.)

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_Once Hermione made it back to her room, she silently showered and got into bed, glad they made it in without being questioned. She fell asleep smiling at the thought that Severus Snape, dungeon bat and Potions master extraordinaire, never known to speak a kind word to anyone, had compared her to some of Shakespeare's finest women._

It was a few days later and Hermione was on the Hogwart's Express. She sighed as she leaned her forehead against the window and watched the landscape roll past.

Getting to the Station had been a nightmare, as was any outing in the wizarding public. The day after she and Severus returned from the last mission, Hermione and the others who were returning to Hogwart's had tried to go to Diagon Alley to get their school supplies. They made it about ten steps before a journalist saw them, and then more journalists started Apparating everywhere. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Ginny all began to run away. They were afraid this might happen. Even though they knew Moody, Kingsley, Tonks, and surprisingly Snape were following them invisibly, they knew they needed to get out of there.

It had been like this ever since after 5th year when it was found out Harry Potter was right about Voldemort's return. Ever since, the Golden Trio had been hunted anytime they were caught out in public.

As they ran back toward the Floo which they came through, journalists started Apparating in their path, trying to stop them.

"Harry, Harry, please! Any comment on You-Know-Who?"

"Was Dumbledore's Army real or just a cover?"

"What plans do you have this year? Any more death defying adventures?"

Harry lost his temper momentarily when he saw a reporter 'accidentally' trip and grab a handful of Hermione's hair. Hermione let out a shriek as she was slammed to the ground. She felt a sharp pain in her nose and could feel blood dribbling down her throat. Harry ran over and practically threw the offending reporter aside and helped Hermione up quickly. Hermione was about to draw her wand herself when she saw the reporter crumple and fall to the ground, Stunned.

Hermione flashed a quick grin in the general direction the spell came from, not knowing if she was thanking an invisible Moody, Kingsley, Tonks, or Snape. She had a feeling it was certain dungeon bat. The spell looked like it had been more powerful than needed, and she couldn't see any of the others overdoing it like that.

"Severus!" Tonks reprimanded Snape a ways away, though somewhat amusedly.

"The reporter was harming her. Simple as that," Snape said matter-of-factly. Kingsley frowned slightly, but both Moody and Tonks had a small smile on their faces. Only Snape would dare to be so bold as to attack a reporter like that in front of Kingsley.

Once they saw the all the teens had gotten to the Floo, which was made easier when the reporters backed off after the attack, the four senior Order members Apparated back to the Burrow where the group had Floo-ed from. They decided against coming through the Floo from Grimmauld Place; since the Floo Network was monitored and governed by the Ministry of Magic, who were looking for the Order's headquarters, they felt it safer to Floo from a neutral location that couldn't be called into question.

They entered the house after walking from the Apparition point to hear Mrs. Weasley yelling.

"Those reporters have NO RESPECT! Attacking a young girl! Not that you are just a young girl, my dear, but TO ATTACK A GIRL! No doubt the ministry will do nothing about this- this, this outrage! If the Minister was here right now, I swear…" Mrs. Weasley went on and on.

Snape and Tonks entered first, bravely. They saw Harry, Ron, and Ginny sitting and listening to Mrs. Weasley rant and trying to fight smiles while Hermione shaking with muffled laughter out of Mrs. Weasley's sight. Mrs. Weasley was over the stove doing what she always did when she was upset: cook.

Though Harry was smiling, he was angry a reporter had grabbed Hermione like that. He moved to sit by her and put an arm around her. Hermione put her arm around him as well, glad to be out of public.

When Mrs. Weasley heard the kitchen door open, she rounded on Snape and Tonks who were shortly followed by Moody and Kingsley.

"And just exactly where WERE you all while Hermione was being attacked? Picking your nose and checking for gold?" Mrs. Weasley yelled in a worried rage.

At this, the Golden Trio and Ginny, who were now joined by rest of the Weasley gang, all snorted in laughter that they couldn't stifle. Luckily, Mrs. Weasley was in her element and in the middle of such a heated tirade that she didn't notice.

Severus looked over to catch Hermione's eye and was successful after she stopped giggling. He arched an eyebrow at her, and she mouthed 'I'm fine.' Then it was her turn to arch an eyebrow at him. He couldn't help but let a smirk come to his lips that told Hermione it had been him who Stunned the reporter. Before she realized it, a genuine smile came to her face. Severus seemed so unarmed by this, his smirk fell and he looked…confused.

"Are you even listening?" Mrs. Weasley yelled, brandishing a spatula at Snape. He gave a quick nod and turned to look back at Hermione, but she was still embraced by Harry and already talking to the twins, probably explaining what had happened at Diagon Alley. He was confused. She had smiled at him. After all he had put her through, she was smiling at him. He was used to no such thing. It made him uncomfortable out of pure inexperience with such a thing. He couldn't shake it from his mind as he tried to look at all interested in what the fuming redhead was saying.

Dumbledore had then thankfully arranged for their school materials to be mailed to them at Hogwart's.

Hermione was shaken from her reverie of the events a couple of days before when Ron and Harry stood up. "We're going to go look for the food trolley," they explained. "Do you want anything?" Hermione shook her head no and they left her alone in the compartment on the train.

Not even a minute later, she heard the door open.

"I would never expect you to give up on a quest for food," Hermione mumbled without looking up.

"I don't know if that was supposed to be directed at me, but if that is your subtle way of telling me to lose some weight…" Remus said with a smile on his face. Hermione looked up and blushed.

"Oh, no Remus, goodness," she said good-heartedly. "Or should I say, _Professor Lupin_," she corrected herself.

"Ah Hermione, there is no need for formalities outside the classroom," he smiled. "I wanted to see how you are. This is the first chance I've had to talk to you in a few days I believe."

"Yes. Well, I'm as fine as I can be," Hermione said truthfully.

"Anything else? You know you can talk to me. And I think we all figured there was more to it than what you and Severus told us," Remus said very forwardly, referring to the mission they had gone on.

"Honestly, we told you everything that's necessary. We went on a mission, and we were successful in a way that pleased Voldemort and that didn't hurt anyone else. And we survived. That's it," Hermione said exactly what she and Severus had agreed on telling everyone.

"Hmm. Well I do believe that, I just also believe there is more to it than that," Remus said questioningly, but not unkindly.

"Don't you think I would tell you everything I could?" Hermione asked, hoping he wouldn't question her further. Remus gave a good-hearted, lopsided grin.

"Yes. I just want you to know you can talk to me."

"Yes, thank you Remus, I know. And I appreciate it greatly," Hermione said genuinely.

"Ok, well, I better get back to my rounds. I'll see you later then, Ms. Granger," he said the last words with a very Professor-like tone. Hermione almost laughed

"Right then, Professor," she said back in the most professional tone she could muster without laughing. He gave her a quick nod and a smile before leaving. A few minutes later Ron and Harry returned with their arms full of so many sweets that Hermione's dentist parents would gave cried if they had seen. Hermione bit her lip. No they wouldn't. They were no longer the parents of Hermione Jean Granger. They were now Mr. and Ms. Winters, dentists in Australia. Well, maybe they would still cry at the sight of so many sweets, but without the humor they reserved for their daughter.

"You okay 'Mione?" Ron said with a mouthful of chocolate frogs, one of which escaped as he opened his mouth in such an undignified manner. Hermione sighed and nodded.

"So, is Ginny excited to be a Prefect?" Hermione asked, successfully changing the topic.

"Oh yeah, she was over the moon," Ron managed to say after he swallowed. He considered Hermione a moment. "You know, I'm surprised you didn't make Head Girl."

Hermione shrugged. "After all the trouble we've been in, I'm surprised either of us ever made Prefect. Speaking of which, did they want us to report on the train?" Hermione asked.

"No, they just wanted the new ones to be present. Give them the run-down or whatever," Ron said, pulling out his Prefect's badge to pin to his robes. Hermione followed suit so she wouldn't forget. Harry seemed to have gotten over the disappointment of never being named a Prefect. He had enough on his mind.

Harry and Ron soon began talking Quidditch, a subject they didn't try to drag Hermione into, for which she was grateful. Hermione herself was wondering why she hadn't been given the position of Head Girl. For the first time, it had not been announced to the Prefects who would be Head Girl and Boy. So technically, it could still be her, but she doubted it.

They arrived without incident and made their way to the castle, but McGonagall intercepted the Trio just inside in the middle of the boisterous crowd.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, you may head on into the Great Hall. Ms. Granger, if you will follow me," she said. Hermione shrugged at Ron and Harry and followed her towards where she knew Dumbledore's office was.

"Reese's Cup." Apparently, Dumbledore had become fond of Muggle candy. After the gargoyle moved to allow Hermione to pass, McGonagall gave her a small, encouraging smile before turning around and leaving for the Great Hall without another word.

Hermione went up the staircase and before she could knock, Dumbledore said "Enter" most amiably. Was the man eternally pleasant? She entered with a half-hearted smile and was half-surprised to see Severus there as well.

"Oh, um, hello," Hermione said, looking at both men. Snape looked somewhat uncomfortable and continued looking into the fire.

"Hermione! How are you?" Dumbledore asked, eyes twinkling.

"Good. And you, sir?"

"Quite alright myself. Now there was something I wished to discuss with you and Professor Snape," he said and waved his hand at the open seat next to Severus. Hermione sat and looked at Dumbledore waiting for him to continue.

"Now at the end of last year, as is custom, all qualified 6th years were allowed to apply to be assistants to any number of professors of subjects that interest them. I see you've applied to every subject we teach," Dumbledore said amusedly. Snape looked up from the fire for the first time to look at Hermione incredulously. He seemed to be biting back a comment about insufferable know-it-alls.

Hermione blushed. "Well, I wanted to, um, keep my options open," she said sheepishly.

"Yes, well you obviously qualify for all of them, but I propose you accept the position as Professor Snape's assistant," Dumbledore said and Severus shifted in his seat. Hermione unintentionally gawped.

"But- he's never taken an assistant!" Hermione said.

"Well even he admitted he's never had such a qualified and talented candidate apply," Dumbledore said. Hermione doubted Severus used those exact words.

"Not only are you qualified, I find it would be a good position for everyone," Dumbledore stood up and looked out the window behind him. Hermione took the opportunity to look over a Severus to gauge his reaction. He glanced quickly at Hermione but remained passive, if a little uncomfortable. She doubted whether Severus had told Dumbledore everything that had… ah, _happened_ between them.

"You see, Severus is doing a good bit of research on some potions and such that could help the Order. The research will go faster with an able-minded and talented partner. Also, as you can guess, Voldemort has asked Professor Snape to keep you close to keep an eye on you. And lastly, you have shown a good deal of interest in Potions so this will be an excellent opportunity for you in itself. The only problem is that it will eat up enough time that being Head Girl might be too much," Dumbledore finished. Hermione took a moment to digest all the information.

"Well, I do want to be Head Girl I suppose, but I would rather help the Order and Professor Snape. And if it keeps You-Know-Who happy, I suppose I would like to accept the Assistant position. If it is truly okay with Professor Snape that is," Hermione said quickly, stealing another glance at Severus. He gave a curt nod that Dumbledore could see.

"Very well, it is settled! Thank you Hermione, I know Head Girl would have meant a lot to you."

"Thank you, sir." As Hermione spoke these words to Dumbledore, Severus stole quickly out of the office.

"Do not worry about him, Ms. Granger. But now, perhaps we should follow the example of his haste. I have no doubt there are many students eagerly awaiting my arrival so that they may tuck in to the feast," he said with a warm smile. And with that they headed down to the Great Hall. Hermione could only imagine what kind of reaction Ron and Harry would have to this new development.

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**Please review!**


	10. Anger

**Thank you for the reviews! And a special thank you to those who wished me a speedy recovery, which I thankfully had. Now, without further ado...**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

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_"Do not worry about Professor Snape, Ms. Granger. But now, perhaps we should follow the example of his haste. I have no doubt there are many students eagerly awaiting my arrival so that they may tuck in to the feast," Dumbledore said with a warm smile. And with that they headed down to the Great Hall. Hermione could only imagine what kind of reaction Ron and Harry would have to this new development._

Hermione left Dumbledore to enter the Great Hall through the student door and managed to take a seat between Ron and Harry without drawing too much attention. Before they could interrogate her the Sorting began. There were many fewer first-years than Hermione ever remembered. After Voldemort's confirmed return and the way the Ministry/Umbridge had tried to take over the school two years ago, many parents resorted to home-schooling. As Hermione glanced around, there were a few faces missing. She only hoped their absence _was_ due to being home-schooled.

In the break between the Sorting and Dumbledore's beginning-of-term speech, Ron and Harry pounced on her with questions, but Dumbledore was quick to begin, aware of the students' hungry looks at their plates. Hermione gave them a well-practiced 'shush' before turning her gaze to the teacher's table, which was an experience in itself.

Her eyes met Remus and they exchanged quick smiles. Then she felt her neck prickle in a most peculiar way and her eyes shot to the opposite end of the teacher's table to meet Severus' gaze. Hermione practically jumped to find him looking at her and then blushed horribly when a few people around her stared. She was very thankful that Dumbledore did not pause at the small distraction. When Hermione composed herself, she risked a glance back to Severus, but he was glaring at his plate in such a way she felt sorry for it. She finally turned her attention to Dumbledore's now familiar speech, though he did add some new things concerning Voldemort and safety.

"And to conclude the normal announcements, the Forbidden Forest is as forbidden and as forest-y as ever. Now, I am happy to announce our new Head Boy and Head Girl for this school year. A round of applause for Ms. Padma Patil and Mr. Draco Malfoy." They both stood and looked very happy. It was the first they knew of it as well.

There was a mixture of clapping and hisses from all the tables. Hermione felt her stomach churn partly because she knew she could have been Head Girl and partly because she was unsure if Lucius Malfoy had told his son about everything. Did Draco know Snape had 'seduced' her and that she was 'working for' Voldemort? Did he know she had tortured his father? Hermione's stomach was twisting so much the feast became much less appetizing.

"Very good. Thank you, I'm sure you will both serve this school well," Dumbledore beamed once the applause and hissing subsided, though he ignored the latter. "And lastly, the appointments of Teacher's Assistants. We have accepted more students this year than any other; quite a talented lot! For Charms: Hannah Abbott. For Herbology: Neville Longbottom. For Defense Against the Dark Arts: Harry Potter. For Astronomy: Terry Boot. And lastly, for Potions: Hermione Granger."

The applause was broken up by sudden chatter at the last appointment. Hermione took in a long breath as she felt many eyes turn on her, most emphatically from the boys on either side of her and from the Slytherin table. Hermione stared resolutely at her own plate, as kindly as she could in consideration of Severus' plate.

"Now, without further ado, let's eat ourselves silly!" and with the last word from Dumbledore's mouth, food appeared before everyone. The wonderful feast was enough of a distraction for most people to stop staring at Hermione and Snape, but this was not the case for Harry, Ron, and a nearby Ginny.

"What is that all about, 'Mione? He'll eat you alive! The greasy git knows those dungeons so well he could kill you and hide the body and no one would ever find you…"

"Is this something to do with what happened over the summer?"

"Why didn't you tell us?"

Hermione took a deep breath and answered them in order.

"First of all, Ron, _Professor Snape_ will not be killing me anytime soon unless he wants me to haunt those dungeons for the rest of his days, spouting out all the information from all the potions textbooks I've ever read." This earned an appreciative grin from all three interrogators who were imagining what she said.

"Secondly, Harry," Hermione said much more seriously, looking around and casting a _Muffliato_ charm so no one would overhear them, "Yes, this is something to do with what happened over the summer, but mostly it's to help the Order. I'll be helping to brew potions and do research for the Order. And lastly Ginny, I didn't tell any of you because I just found out myself. McGonagall took me to talk to Dumbledore just now. He encouraged this," Hermione finished tiredly.

"But how are you going to work with him? He is such a-"

"Don't worry about me Ginny. I will be able to deal with him just fine," Hermione said with much more confidence than she felt. How was she going to work with this man remembering everything that had happened? How was she going to work with him when just a look from him mad her panicky?

Ron and Harry didn't seem happy but offered 'to take care of the great bat' if he tried anything or was too cruel.

"I really just don't see how it would be comfortable being alone with the man," was the last thing Ginny (or any of them) said about it that night. They had no idea.

But after that Hermione was able to change the subject.

"Anyways, more importantly congratulations Harry! You get to assist Remus!" Hermione said turning to her friend. Harry grinned a big lopsided smile.

"Yeah congrats, mate," Ron managed to choke out around a mouthful of potatoes. Satisfied that everyone had the answers they wanted, Hermione began to pick at some food.

"But what about our favorite Malfoy being Head Boy? He's going to be horrible," Harry said, the smile dropping from his face, though it quickly returned as he said, "And Padma as Head Girl, Ron? You taking her to the Yule Ball was a disaster."

"Uhhhg don't remind me. Hopefully she's as happy as me to forget about that forever. And hell, I don't remember you going with Parvati going particularly well either," Ron said jokingly, slapping him on the back.

"Oh shut up Ronald," Ginny said while she moved to comfort Harry. Hermione chuckled and drank some pumpkin juice. She wondered how Harry bwas so clueless about Ginny's interest.

The rest of the night, she didn't look up at the teacher's table again even when her neck prickled.

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The first day of class was usually something Hermione loved. This year she dreaded it. Her first class was N.E.W.T. level Potions bright and early with Snape. Slughorn had retired after he had been targeted by Death Eaters over the summer and Snape had grudgingly taken his post back. Hermione felt sorry for Severus in a way. The only thing he had wanted over the years was to teach D.A.D.A.

Hermione met Ron and Harry in the Great Hall for breakfast. Since they were both serious about becoming Aurors, they both had to take advanced Potions as well. It was the only consolation Hermione had, that they would be there with her. Since N.E.W.T. Potions was the earliest class of the day, they had a good idea of who would be in there with them as they looked around the Great Hall at the ungodly hour of 6:00 am. Only a few seventh years from each house were there, including the new Head Boy. Hermione groaned.

They ate and left for the dungeons for the lesson which lasted from 6:30 to 8:30 am. The classroom was unlocked so they went in. They were the first there and Snape was nowhere in sight. The Trio all sat at the same table though they all fully expected to be separated.

Under strict supervision and coercion of Hermione, all three of them reviewed the material they were to cover that lesson as the others slowly began to come in. When Draco entered, along with the Tracey Davis and Blaise Zabini, the only other Slytherins who made into advanced Potions, his eyes shot to Hermione. She met his gaze but his expression was so blank it worried her. Most uncharacteristically, Malfoy ignored them and sat with his fellow Slytherins at the table that was the farthest from them. Harry and Ron gave Hermione worried looks because they too wondered whether Malfoy knew anything, though Harry and Ron knew almost nothing of the truth. Hermione shushed them before they could talk and made them continue reviewing.

At exactly 6:30 am Snape strode into the classroom, dark robes billowing dramatically.

"This is very advanced material. If you are not willing to devote a great deal of your time to learn this, I advise you to leave now." He paused as if hoping some of them would get up and walk out. He looked around the room, looking everyone in the eye. Except Hermione, which she noted.

"You are expected to know this material thoroughly, beyond the minimum. My expectations are higher than ever, though I expect your performance and proficiency to be more lacking than ever. Now can anyone tell me the effect of ingesting Alihotsy leaves and what the antidote is? Mr. Weasley?"

Ron chewed his lip and shook his head.

"Pity. Mr. Zabini?"

Blaise looked like he had been punched in the face. Snape never called out his own students. He dumbly shook his head.

"As I said, I will have higher expectations for _all _of you. Anyone?"

Hermione slowly raised her hand.

"Ms. Granger?" he said without looking at her. Hermione almost fell out of her seat. He hadn't called on her voluntarily in years.

"Don't tell me you raised your hand if you didn't intend to answer."

"Yes, sorry sir. Um, Alihotsy leaves cause hysteria when ingested. The best known antidote is the fluid secreted by the Glumbumble, but it has to be administered in carefully proportioned doses because Glumbumble fluid also causes melancholy and too much can cause irreversible depression," she finished.

"Correct." Hermione almost fell out of her chair again. He always corrected something or added something else to what she said, no matter how thorough her answer. The Slytherins looked as bewildered as Hermione.

"Today we will be brewing Befuddlement Draught. What are the main ingredients…Mr. Potter?"

Harry had a rush of gratitude toward Hermione for making them review the lesson material.

"Ah, the main ingredients are scurvy-grass, lovage, and sneezewort. Other ingredients can be added depending on how you wish the potion to affect a person specifically," Harry said, relishing how odd it felt to know the answer. Snape's eyes flashed in annoyance for a second, but he nodded.

"Yes. Would you happen to know what ingredients to add if you wish your target to become too confused to do any upper-level magic? Or to be able to recall names and dates?" Harry's weak smile vanished.

"No, sir."

"Does anyone?" Snape drawled.

Again Hermione's hand shot up automatically. Snape sighed.

"Ms. Granger?" Again, he did not look at her.

"Dried Billywig stings and steamed Mandrake root, respectively."

"Yes. But today we will be making the standard base. You will be graded on quality. You will be working individually, the instructions-" he waved his wand "are on the board. You have until 8:00am to finish brewing and place your attempts on my desk. When you finish, you may begin on your essay describing the potion's main ingredients and their properties, as well as 5 other ingredients and how they would alter the potion's effect. Three scrolls." Everyone internalized a groan as they set out to work.

Hermione was the first to finish at only half-past 7. Her potion was perfect. She bottled it, labeled it, and brought it to his desk. He was reading something very intently. As she was about to return to her seat, he spoke.

"Ms. Granger, please remain after class so that we may discuss our schedule," he said without looking up from whatever he was reading.

Hermione nodded and returned to her desk and began writing her essay. She thought class would be much worse, but staying busy seemed to keep her mind off of things.

She had been having nightmares lately. One of them was watching Severus get stabbed and thrown across the room. But most of them were concerning something else, and would only start out as absolute nightmares. They would start with Lucius beating her and throwing her on the bed, who then turned into Voldemort who kissed her. At that point in her dreams, she would either wake up or Voldemort would then turn into Severus who would then continue to have sex with her. She would always wake up before they finished.

When she would awake from such dreams, she couldn't say she was aroused. Sometimes she was, but she was more confused and angry that she kept having the dreams. If it wasn't for the dreams, Hermione had almost been able to convince herself it never happened. That's what he seemed to want to do. She wondered what had happened. In the Burrow, Severus had seemed concerned and almost friendly.

She finished more than half of the essay before the end of class. When everyone else left, including an eerily out-of-character Malfoy, Harry and Ron hung around but she told them to go ahead. They didn't seem happy about it but decided to stay on Hermione's good side in hopes she would help them with their essay.

When everyone had left, Hermione realized this was the first time they had been alone since she had healed him in Voldemort's compound. She awkwardly approached Severus' desk. He didn't acknowledge her presence for a few moments, but then he sighed and spoke without looking up.

"Dumbledore advised me to ask about your school schedule so we can decide good times to work," he said in a tone that clearly said he resented Dumbledore's interference.

"I'm done with lessons every day by 3. On Tuesday and Thursday I don't begin lessons until 10:00 am," Hermione said as she thought about her schedule. She felt distinctly uncomfortable being alone with him. Was his plan to act as if everything was normal?

"Dumbledore has set us up with quite a bit of work, though the normal work for Madame Pomfrey needs to be done first. Would you be able to handle working every weeknight from after dinner, say from 8 o'clock? I can't say when we would finish each night, but if it runs after 11:00 you will be exempt from the curfew."

"Um, sure. And weekends?" she asked unsurely.

"As needed," Severus said shortly. Hermione was about to ask something when he waved his hand, dismissing her.

"Tonight at 8:00 then, Ms. Granger," he said without ever looking up. Hermione paused and nodded quickly before grabbing her things and leaving.

The rest of the day flew by. Every moment that Hermione wasn't working in class she spent working on homework. She had a good few long breaks between classes which she would usually be grateful for, but now she wished she had more classes to fill in the free time. By the time she met with Harry and Ron for dinner at 7, she was done with all her homework for the next week even though it was only the first day. Luckily, Ron and Harry assumed she was outdoing herself for the upcoming N.E.W.T.'s at the end of the year.

When she left for the dungeons at quarter of 8, her heart began to sink. She entered the classroom at exactly 8:00. Severus looked up as she entered but quickly looked back down as he pointed her to the cauldron across from his desk which had ingredients set up next to it.

"I have some other work to do. Madame Pomfrey needs an entire batch of Blood-Replenishing potion. And Ms. Granger, do try to remember this is not Potions class. You need not impress anyone with your intelligence, only remember this will be used to treat people." With that, he continued reading and making notes on something. Hermione was angered to say the least. He was obviously determined to act like nothing had ever happened, despite the brief change of character she had seen. It was back to Ms. Granger. And he wouldn't look her in the eye.

Hermione swallowed her anger and set out to work. He had left out the ingredient list and instructions (which she didn't need). She quickly did the math to adjust the amount of each ingredient to make the instructed volume and set out to work. She was working in the corner in front of and to the side of his desk, facing diagonally toward the center of the room. From that position she was able to steal quick glances at him which she hoped were unnoticed. She hoped that like in class, keeping busy would keep her mind focused. But she found it was quite different when they were alone.

As she was about to add the crushed snake fangs, she took another quick look at him. He was still reading some article and making notes. He seemed to find something of interest and he licked his lip in concentration. That was all it took.

Hermione stared determinedly into the bubbling cauldron as she felt herself blush. The dream was playing in her mind. First Lucius and Voldemort then Severus; kissing her neck, his teeth grazing her ear, making her stomach clinch in pleasure at the sensation. He had set her skin on fire. He was a real _man_ before her, and he had made her feel like … that…

Hermione was broken from her reverie when the cauldron bubbled over. Some of it splashed onto her arm, burning it.

"MS. GRANGER!" Hermione jumped when Severus yelled and leapt from his desk, vanishing the mess and the charred contents of the cauldron. "What the hell are you doing?"

Though it was far from the best time to say anything, Hermione muttered, "Back to formalities and last names, are we?"

He glared but ignored her. "What, may I ask, distracted you so much that you managed to ruin a potion taught to 1st years?"

"A nightmare I've been having," Hermione said defiantly, though she did begin to feel a bit stupid. And a bit like she was lying. Only a little bit was actually a nightmare. The rest of the dream was confusing and frustrating.

"What nightmare would distract you that much," he said absentmindedly as he looked at the burned cauldron base.

"I think you know what," Hermione said coldly. At that Snape looked like he had been slapped in the face. Hermione was confused but then saw that he had misunderstood her.

"No, not about…us. Though I'm glad to see I'm not crazy and you do remember," she said a bit quieter, "It was about Lucius Malfoy and You-Know-Who." He seemed to forget about the nightmare.

"You think I would simply…forget," he said dumbly, though she could see his anger rising to volatile levels. "Not only do I remember it, but it haunts me. I thought you would best be left alone. So you wouldn't have to relive any _nightmares_," he said the last word so icily that Hermione almost flinched. "For that very reason I argued with Dumbledore to not make me take you on as my Assistant. It is already very clear to me I was right."

"No, I would say there is not much you are right about here," Hermione said taking a step closer to him. Severus looked somewhat surprised. Not many people dared to argue back when he was angry. "You think I wanted to be _left alone_? No, being left alone is something you do with Hungarian Horntails or Blast-Ended Skrewts, not with something or someone you simply can't bring yourself to look at!" Hermione practically yelled.

At this, he was simply left wordless. Hermione waited, but he didn't say anything. Hermione made a noise that was something between a growl and a cry of exasperation and walked out of the dungeons.


	11. Trust Again

**If you see any mistakes like that, please do point them out to me! I want to make this story as good as possible. I still have a mini heart-attack every time I make mistakes. Thank you!**

**Well, I think that's everything! I enjoyed writing this chapter. I'll shut up now.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

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"_You think I wanted to be left alone? No, being left alone is something you do with Hungarian Horntails or Blast-Ended Skrewts, not with something or someone you simply can't bring yourself to look at!" Hermione practically yelled. At this, Severus was simply left wordless. Hermione waited, but he didn't say anything. Hermione made a noise that was something between a growl and a cry of exasperation and walked out of the dungeons._

After she left, Hermione felt stupid. She had agreed to be Sev- no, Snape's assistant to be able to help Harry and the Order and she had walked out the very first night. Not only that, she had messed up a simple potion and angered Severus Snape to volatile levels. And she had burned her arm. She remembered that part very clearly as the cool night air flowed over the raw flesh. It was then she realized in her anger she had walked all the way out of the castle.

Hermione sighed and paused for a moment, watching some first years run away from her near the door. She imagined she must have been a sight, storming out of the castle with a bloody arm. For a moment she imagined that Severus must get a lot of satisfaction from always storming around like that, terrifying everyone in his way. She did a quick charm to wrap her wounds. She would have to deal with them at some point, like she would Snape, but not now.

Hermione found herself wandering the dark grounds. It was now a few minutes past 9 and everyone was inside. One of Dumbledore's newer rules was to be inside by nightfall, but as a Prefect she could technically claim exemption from the rule, though it would be a very weak claim.

She found one of her favorite thinking places. It was off of the Lake, behind a boulder that sheltered her from view of the castle. She nestled down into the depression in the ground she had made over the years and stared into the calm waters.

She knew she would have to apologize to him. She knew she would have to do a lot of things. But she needed the moment of quiet and calm. She watched the lake for a very long time. She watched as the sky darkened to a deep black.

It was all very serene and unmoving, which is why it was so surprising for her to see a dark figure move around the edge of the lake near her some time later.

"You've got to be kidding me," Hermione said under her breath. Was the man psychic? How did he find her? And why now?

She watched as Severus moved to the edge of the lake and looked into it as Hermione was doing. But he didn't seem to notice her. She realized he didn't know she was out there. She studied him for a moment wondering what he was thinking when he seemed to sense he was being watched.

His eyes snapped around and landed on Hermione, still sitting comfortably against the rock. She didn't move or react, but just met his equally brooding gaze. They stared at each other for a few very long moments.

Severus seemed to be thinking over something. Eventually he sighed and jerked his head, indicating that she should follow as he turned to walk along the shoreline. He seemed unnervingly distracted. Hermione stood a bit painfully for she had been sitting for too long but hurried all the same to catch up his uncharacteristically slow pace.

The moment she was beside him he spoke. He seemed tired and looked like he was greatly burdened.

"It seems what you are looking for is for me to treat you like an adult. To tell you the truth. So here it is," he began in dark voice. "Not even in my wildest of nightmares do I imagine surviving this war. I'm sure the thought has crossed your mind that you may lose your life in this struggle, especially being so close to the _Chosen One_. Everyone has a good chance of dying. Considering what you have been forced into, the likelihood of your survival in particular has greatly diminished," he finished in a heavy voice, glancing at her in case he needed to catch her if she fell into hysterics.

Hermione almost laughed at his weighty admission.

"Are you going to tell me anything I don't already know?" Hermione asked not missing a beat.

Severus, on the other hand, stopped in his tracks, his eyes flashing in surprise at her.

"I knew from the second I stepped into You-Know-Who's headquarters how deep I was in. If you think for one minute that I didn't know what that might mean for me, you must truly think lowly of me. And it seems to me we have already had this conversation, but you continue to change your mind and go back to keeping me in the dark," Hermione said as she turned to look him in the eye. He saw the dark determination in her eyes; eyes that were too serious for a witch of her age.

"I only thought-"

"That I might not be able to take it? I saw how you looked at me just then. Don't worry; I'm quite used to being undervalued and underestimated by most in this war," she said half-bitterly.

"A mistake I won't make again. You're obviously quite mature judging by your actions earlier this evening," he said coolly, though without malice. Hermione shifted.

"A lapse in judgment that will not happen again. Believe when I say I know that losing my calm may really get me in trouble in other situations," Hermione spoke softly, "I'm sorry."

Severus mouth hung open a little. A willing and genuine apology was something he expected as much as to see Hagrid leap down the halls of Hogwarts in a tutu.

Before he had time to recover and speak again, a shrill voice pierced the air.

"What are you doing out here at this time of night?" McGonagall demanded as Dumbledore soon joined her at her side; he had obviously been following her, trying to calm her.

"Please, Minerva, it's such a nice night. Perhaps we should all take a walk together sometime," he said in a most serious but genial voice.

"Albus do not make light of this! A Professor out with a student on grounds at this time of night! Not only is it entirely inappropriate, but it's not safe for _anyone_ to be out here. Why on Earth are you out here at almost midnight?" McGonagall demanded again. As quick as ever, Hermione jumped in.

"We were going to collect some Potions ingredients we needed," Hermione said calmly, as if proving her point from the last thing she said to Severus.

McGonagall looked sharply at Severus before inquiring, "Then where are the ingredients you've come out here to collect?"

"We came down here to locate some hellebore," Hermione said indicating the bunch of purple flowers she had just seen at the base of a nearby tree, "We must wait until exactly midnight to collect the hellebore, or else it will make any potion we add it to poisonous. Madame Sprout doesn't start growing any of her own until spring, but the wild variety makes better potions anyway," Hermione finished smoothly. Severus almost smirked as he nodded in agreement, though he felt nervous trusting Hermione to smooth this over.

"Why on Earth are you picking it tonight? The only things Madame Pomfrey asked for was some Blood-Replenishing Potions which she was expecting some time ago, which is why we came to see where you were when neither of you were in the dungeons! What Potion did you need to make so desperately tonight?" she demanded as Dumbledore's eyes twinkled in Hermione's direction. Severus grew more nervous; what was she going to come up with?

"The Draught of Peace," Hermione said simply.

"And why would you need that specifically tonight?" McGonagall asked, exasperated.

"Well as you know, it soothes agitation. And as you know, I am working closely with Professor Snape," Hermione said very matter-of-factly and had to fight back a smile. After a moment of consideration, so did McGonagall.

"Are you satisfied Minerva? Severus and Hermione are not doing anything untoward to each other, and it seems they are making the proper preparations to keep it that way!" Dumbledore smiled. "And goodness, we do not want to keep them! It is almost midnight! I would hate to hinder their quest tonight. As long as they intend to return to the castle soon, I see no problem." Hermione and Severus both nodded calmly.

McGonagall sighed but gave Hermione a very tight smile.

"Very well. Hermione. Severus," McGonagall nodded to each of them and gave Severus a sharp look before reluctantly turning and walking back toward the castle. Dumbledore looked over his glasses at the two with twinkling eyes before smiling and following McGonagall.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Hermione looked at Severus. He gave her the most incredulous look and she couldn't help the smile that crept across her lips.

"That was all off the top of your head?" he asked disbelievingly.

"It was all correct academically, was it not?" she asked innocently. She couldn't believe she was teasing Severus Snape.

"Well yes. But was it necessary to say a Draught of Peace is necessary to work with me?" he asked, annoyed.

"Well, they seemed willing to believe it," Hermione smirked. Before he could retort, Hermione brushed past him and picked a few of the purple flowers.

"What are you doing?" Severus asked watching her pick the hellebore.

"Do you think McGonagall will not come looking to see if we actually made the potion?" Hermione asked.

Severus had to admit, though not out loud, that he hadn't thought of that.

"You need not worry about making it. I will. You need to go to bed," Severus said sternly, though without the usual hardness. Hermione sighed.

"No, it was my fault we didn't finish the Potions. It's my fault we're out here, and it's my fault we'll have Professor McGonagall breathing down our necks. I will come back and make the potions," Hermione said apologetically. Severus was immediately uncomfortable again. He didn't need her help. He squared his shoulders getting ready to argue.

"Please, let me make the potions. I made a commitment and I intend to see it through," she said determinedly as she stood with her arms full of the flowers. His shoulders fell. Why was she able to disarm him so completely like that? He sighed heavily.

He then realized he had dodged a bullet. After her actions earlier on, he was sure was going to drag him into a conversation about emotions and about what had happened between them. But she had just wanted acknowledgment and the courtesy of truth. In all honesty, which he now felt he owed her, he was lucky to be stuck with her of all the witches it could have been.

"Very well then. Ah, I suppose you may go ahead and redo the Blood-Replenishing potions while I will make the Draught of Peace. It seems you will already need to return to the dungeons to treat that anyway," he said looking at the bandaged arm. Hermione's hand automatically moved to feel the bandages on her right arm. She had forgotten. She was glad McGonagall hadn't noticed in her interrogation. She would have had a fit.

"Ok," she said simply.

They both walked in silence back to the castle and back to the dungeons, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Hermione couldn't have explained what had just happened even if she wanted to.

* * *

"Albus, do you really think it is wise to have them work together? They are…very different," McGonagall said worriedly. She had always liked Hermione and wanted to watch out for her.

"Minerva, Voldemort is working Severus harder than ever! The Order is leaning on him as well. I think he needs someone to help shoulder the burden. Besides, I think it has been a while since Ms. Granger has had a good challenge, as working closely with Severus will undoubtedly prove to be," Dumbledore said as they made it back to the castle.

"But to make a Draught of Peace just to work with each other the first day?" she exclaimed. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.

"I believe I am correct in saying Severus has met his match. Two such strong and brilliant minds will undoubtedly clash, but I think they will end up being able to work quite well together," he said and turned to go up to his office.

McGonagall was not convinced as she walked away, but could not help but smile as she remembered how boldly Hermione had called Severus out- and to his face no less. He had met his match in deed.

* * *

Once back, Severus disappeared and returned with a burn salve for Hermione's arm. After making sure it healed correctly, they worked in relatively agreeable silence. She made the entire batch of Blood-Replenishing potion before Severus had finished the Draught of Peace. It had to boil for a good bit of time during which Hermione bottled and labeled the Blood-Replenishing Potion.

"The black cabinet behind my desk- it connects directly to the infirmary. Place them inside there. Madame Pomfrey will get them," Severus said as she finished labeling the last vial. She nodded and carefully carried the racks of potion back to the classroom she had sat in for so many years. She felt weird to step behind his desk.

Once she returned, Hermione observed what stage in the potion Severus was at and wordlessly hand-ground some moonstone which was the last ingredient in the Draught of Peace. He silently accepted her help. If there was one thing he understood, it was commitment to a promise.

As the potion finally reached the desired hue, Hermione looked at the clock. It was already 3am. As Hermione cleaned up, Severus bottled the potion into vials and labeled them. Hermione started to collect her things to leave when Severus' hand appeared in front of her holding out a box filled with individual doses of the Draught of Peace.

"I have kept some to appease Professor McGonagall. I thought you could use these to help you sleep. Ah, for you nightmares," Severus finished uncomfortably.

Hermione felt her chest tighten uncomfortably.

"I, uh, thank you. I mean, I hope you know that I was telling the truth earlier. The nightmares are not concerning you and me. Just Lucius and You-Know-Who. And sometimes my parents," she finished sheepishly. Severus tensed for a second before nodding curtly.

Hermione blew out the breath she was holding.

"Good. That's all that needs to be said I believe," Hermione breathed out. Her eyes met his. There was a moment of mutual appreciation.

Hermione turned and walked to the door but paused. She chewed her lip in deliberation before choosing to say "Goodnight, Severus."

"Goodnight, Hermione."

* * *

Hermione stepped through the portrait into Gryffindor common room and met two pairs of eye looking at her accusingly. Hermione sighed; she was never going to get to sleep. It was 3:30 am and apparently Harry and Ron had waited up for her.

"Hermione, where the hell have you been? And with Snape? I know you said you were working with him, but until 3am? Do you know how that looks?" Ron half-yelled. Hermione's eyes narrowed.

"And you know I have been with _Professor_ Snape this entire time how?" she demanded.

Harry looked a little guilty and pulled out the Marauder's map.

"Sorry, Hermione. We didn't want to invade your privacy or anything, but we were-"

"You were what?" she snapped, though she started to feel bad for her anger.

"Worried, Hermione, we were worried. We swear," Ron said, looking a little fearful. Hermione sighed.

"I was working with Professor Snape. We were working on a potion when we realized we needed a particular ingredient we were out of. We went out to the grounds to find some and it took a lot longer than we expected, but we had to finish the potions tonight, so we worked until it was all done," Hermione explained much more calmly. She wished she could be completely honest with them, but she also knew Dumbledore meant for her to keep their work to herself. And she didn't particularly feel like discussing Severus with the two anyway; she knew their attitude toward him.

Harry and Ron both nodded in understanding and apologized again.

"It's okay, honestly. I'm sorry I snapped. But that's what happens when you work with Severus Snape for hours," she half-joked. Ron and Harry laughed. But then they stopped and looked at each other.

"Um, there was something else we wanted to talk about with you," Ron admitted.

"What is it?"Hermione asked, sitting down on the floor across from them by the fire. Harry looked around and cast a Muffliato charm around them.

"You remember last year when I found out about the Horcruxes and Dumbledore and I tried to learn about them? Well, even then I wanted to leave school and go on a search for them, but Dumbledore said I shouldn't, that I needed to remain under protection. And I know we talked about it and agreed not to, but things are different. I mean, I'm 17 so now we all are. I mean, you're almost 18," Harry began cautiously, not sure how Hermione would react.

Hermione frowned. She couldn't leave now. Severus needed her help. Not to mention if she left, Severus would undoubtedly be tortured and punished by Voldemort, if not killed.

"Harry, I am not dismissing your idea. In fact, I feel something bad is coming and we should be doing more about the Horcruxes. But before we do anything drastic like leaving Hogwart's, let's think about this. I mean, we have really good resources here. Why don't we do our research? Let's try to find out where these Horcruxes may be before we go looking for them. Also, we can actually plan how we might go about doing this. Please Harry, I do hear you. But let's actually prepare for this if we are going to do it," Hermione pleaded.

Ron laughed.

"I knew she would say something like that. Let's research this and research that," Ron joked. Harry sighed.

"You know Hermione, I don't think we would have survived past first year without you," Harry conceded.

"Does that mean you will listen to me about this?" Hermione asked unsurely.

After a few moments and thought, Harry reluctantly said "Yes." Hermione smiled and leaned over to hug Harry and then Ron.

"Thank you guys. I know how much you want to do this, I just want to make sure we can do our best," Hermione said, "And don't you ever think you can get away with using the Map to invade my privacy ever again. I will set Ginny on you," Hermione threatened.

Ron cringed and Harry laughed. They both knew of the power Ginny was capable of when she wanted it.

Ron headed upstairs, but Harry stayed behind.

"Are you really okay? I mean, I'm fairly sure there are things you haven't told us, but I also know you have a good reason if that's true," Harry said, looking worried. Hermione sighed, though not unhappily.

"I've told you everything I can tell you, Harry, believe me."

"I do. I just worry. If you weren't my friend you would never have gone through any of this," Harry said.

"But, as you pointed out, if I wasn't your friend, you wouldn't have even survived first year," Hermione offered a small smile.

Harry cracked into a grin.

"That's true."

Harry wrapped Hermione in a bear hug. Hermione felt guilty when it occurred to her that Harry wasn't as firm-chested as Severus. Hermione shook the thought from her head and returned the hug.

Hermione said goodnight and went upstairs to her dormitory, trying not to wake Lavender or Parvati. Fay and Kellah, her other regular dorm-mates had not returned for their 7th year, and neither had returned any owls. Hermione hoped both were safe. She wasn't particularly close to either of them, but after living with them for six years she did care about them.

Hermione slipped into bed with the weight of the world on her shoulders. She would now have to divide all her time between her work with Severus, her research for Harry, and her classes which were quickly taking a lower priority. She was going to keep her grades up, but she couldn't shake the feeling she wouldn't be at Hogwart's for the NEWT's. She had a feeling Voldemort wouldn't be so nice as to let them all finish their seventh year before he planned another attack or something. And he didn't know what she was going to do about Harry ad Ron wanting to leave to find Horcuxes. She had bought some time with her well-intentioned excuse of needing to research, but what would happen when they were prepared?

Hermione fell into a restless and anxious sleep.

* * *

Hermione slept as late as possible, which was until about 9. She quickly showered and grabbed an apple for breakfast before hurrying to her first class on Tuesday; NEWT level Defense Against the Dark Arts at 10 am.

For their first lesson, Lupin taught them in detail about the Unforgivable curses, as well as some other equally nasty curses and hexes. Though the Ministry had not approved it, Dumbledore had approved a more in-depth curriculum for the course, especially now during the war.

By the end of class, Lupin made them all try to fight off the Imperius Curse, which all of the trio could now easily do.

Hermione was also happy to hear Lupin talk about Occlumency at the end of the lesson. He offered to set up lessons with anyone who was interested, but anyone under 17 had to have parent's permission. Hermione was pleased with her ability in Occlumency, but she pressured Ron to take lessons. He was the only one of the trio who hadn't learned it.

Hermione had a break between DADA and advanced Transfiguration, which she decided to spend in the library researching anything she could find on Horcruxes. She ventured to the Restricted section which she long ago got a pass to get into, thanks to Dumbledore. He trusted her to use the resources there wisely and carefully.

She went to one of the backmost shelves for a book she needed for Horcrux research titled _Secrets of the Darkest Art_. She saw where it should have been shelved, but it was gone.

"What are you doing back here?"

Hermione almost jumped out of her skin. She had been on her tiptoes to see the shelf and quickly toppled over, though she didn't have far to fall because Severus was mere inches behind her. She twisted and fell face first into his chest with an 'oomph.' One of her hands caught onto his arm while the other landed on his chest.

"You should be more aware of your surroundings," he commented smoothly while pulling her back up to an upright position. Her hand lingered on his chest when she felt a jolt of electricity sprout out from where he was touching her arm. Hermione could have sworn he felt it too because she saw a momentary flash of intensity on his face.

"You should be more aware of your affect on people," Hermione quickly quipped, clutching her hand at her rapidly beating heart as she took a step back from him. He had very much startled her.

"I am aware of my affect on people, and I am quite happy with it. But I believe I asked you a question. What are you doing here?" he repeated in a very low tone. Hermione supposed he meant his voice to sound menacing, but it did not... And what did he mean, he was happy about the affect he had on people? She wondered if this was all in her head. Perhaps after having all those dreams, she was just imagining things now. Those damn dreams. The dreams were vivid. She couldn't help it. She couldn't help the way she found him oddly and darkly intriguing, even though she had to convince him to trust her every other day.

"I have a pass," she finally responded, showing him the slip Dumbledore had given her the year before.

"That still did not answer my question," he repeated, suddenly seeming annoyed. "And here I was, thinking you valued honesty above all between us," he said referencing their conversation from the night before as he sneered and began to walk away.

"Hey, stop! If you must know, what I am researching is something I should not talk about out freely," Hermione said quickly, looking around as if anyone else would be in the Restricted Section.

Severus seemed to be intrigued and turned back to an exasperated Hermione. His mood swings really exhausted her.

Severus cast a Muffliato charm and quirked an eyebrow, asking for her to continue.

"Listen, it's something to do with You-Know-Who and how he has managed to stay alive. Dumbledore and Harry have investigated it, and I am just-"

"Horcruxes," Severus interrupted looking at her as if he had just now seen her properly.

"Oh, so Dumbledore has told you?" Hermione asked stupidly. Severus scoffed.

"Dumbledore has asked me to try to find out about them and where they might be. Even being in the Dark Lord's most inner circle, I have not been able to find anything out. I must beg the question, why are _you_ researching this?" he asked.

"Well, I'm trying to help Harry figure it all out. I think the war is coming to a head soon and seeing as You-Know-Who can't die with the Horcruxes still existing, I feel like we need to be doing something. Even if I am just researching things that Dumbledore already knows, I want to understand it the best I can myself," Hermione defended herself, feeling somewhat annoyed at him for questioning her like that.

"Which is why you were looking for _Secrets of the Darkest Art_?" Severus asked smoothly, looking at the empty space on the shelf.

"Uh, well, yeah," Hermione said, "How do you..?"

"Since learning about the Horcruxes, Dumbledore has done plenty of research himself. I believe he has that particular book in his office. But I must ask, how do you know of the book?" he asked, genuinely curious. It was Hermione's turn to smirk.

"Perks of being an 'insufferable know-it-all' and a bookworm. I am aware of a great many works, both good and evil. Though I've never practiced any of the Dark Arts I've researched and read about, I know many of the books, including that one," Hermione said, tilting her head to the side to gauge his reactions. She mentioned studying Dark Arts which she knew may be a touchy subject for him. Dumbledore had explained Severus' past as a Death Eater and his current position as a double-agent to Harry at the end of the previous year. Severus shifted uncomfortably.

"Very interesting. Well then, Ms. Insufferable Know-It-All," he relished the words in a way that told Hermione he remembered speaking them before, "you wouldn't happen to know a book that tells how to temporarily induce death?" Severus asked as he scanned the shelves, apparently looking for something himself.

"_Immortalirituals_," she said absent-mindedly, as she looked at a few titles herself that caught her eye.

"What?" he asked.

"Were you serious about the subject you are looking for?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Yes," he answered, raising an eyebrow.

"_Immortalirituals_, the book accidentally took from Romania? The one I had to give to You-Know-Who?" she asked hurriedly. Severus saw her eyes brighten with an idea.

He sighed in disappointment. "I told you, it can't help-"

"It doesn't just cover how to become immortal," Hermione said, and quickly continued at the look he gave her, "Even though you told me I had nothing to worry about for giving You-Know-Who the book, I went ahead and researched what topics that book covered for my peace of mind! Based on my research, I believe it covers some spells or potions or something that can induce temporary death in the target," she said the last few words excitedly, quoting what she had found in her research word-for-word. "Didn't you say that Professor Dumbledore examined a copy?"

"Yes, but he destroyed it afterward for protection from the Dark Lord for fear he may find some other use for it," Severus said though he was looking at Hermione in amazement. Who went through that much trouble to cover all their bases? How the hell did she remember all that?

"…Does You-Know-Who still have that copy?" Hermione asked slowly. When he didn't answer, she went on.

"Can you tell me what you are researching it for? If it is something for the war, that's what I'm supposed to be helping you with," Hermione insisted. Severus considered her for a few long moments.

"Come to the dungeons tonight at 8. If Dumbledore allows me," Severus said seriously and walked past her to leave, but paused. "I do not think Dumbledore will give you the copy of _Secrets of the Darkest Art_ even if it is to research Horcruxes, but if you want to start with a general understanding, find _Magick Moste Evile_," Severus said thoughtfully.

"I read that last year. But thank you," Hermione smiled.

Surprisingly, Severus returned the smile, even if it was more of a smirk.

"I should have known," was the last thing he said before walking away hurriedly.

Hermione watched Severus leave the library, curiosity almost overwhelming her. She also felt somewhat worried. If they were to retrieve that book, that would mean going to Voldemort's headquarters again. She didn't know how she was supposed to concentrate on anything until 8 that night.

**

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**Take note that I used **_**harrypotter dot wikia dot com**_** to find out their birthdays and year. Hermione's birthday is September 19, 1979. Ron: March 1, 1980. Harry: July 31, 1980. This means going into their 7th year, Harry and Ron are 17, and Hermione is about to turn 18. Just to clear up any age questions.**

**Reviews are valued and appreciated!**


	12. Plot Thickened Soup

**A big thank you to reviewers! I love getting feedback. Now, for some plot-thickened soup... and rice...**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

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_Hermione watched Severus leave the library, curiosity almost overwhelming her. She also felt somewhat worried. If they were to retrieve that book, that would mean going to Voldemort's headquarters again. She didn't know how she was supposed to concentrate on anything until 8 that night._

Hermione left the Herbology greenhouse at 3 that afternoon feeling as nervous as ever.

"What are you worrying about? Surely it can't be homework, you've done everything that's due for the next month," Harry said as Ron joined them walking back to the castle.

"Oh, it's just the work I'm doing with Professor Snape. He makes me nervous," Hermione said honestly. "Hey, I'll catch up with you guys later."

Harry and Ron nodded and headed up to the Common Room. She really just wanted some time to think.

She decided tonight that if Severus would trust her enough to let her help him with his real work for the Order, she would venture to ask him some questions. She had lived with his scant explanations so far, but it was killing her not to understand everything that was going on.

What exactly did Severus tell Voldemort was going on between them? Why would Voldemort allow that to go on? Why didn't Voldemort just kill her? Why did Voldemort pretend to trust her? Hermione honestly doubted that the Dark Lord would be so easily fooled. She had a feeling Severus would not want to answer many questions, but Hermione was determined to get her answers if she was going to work with him.

She visited the kitchens, but Dobby wasn't there so she found herself wandering around the castle aimlessly until she bumped into someone.

"Hello, Hermione," Remus said, stumbling backward.

"Oh, I'm sorry Remus! I didn't see you," she said embarrassedly.

"Oh, you're quite forgiven. In fact, if you're not busy, would you like some tea?" he asked.

"Sure." They walked back to Remus' office chatting the whole way. He poured them some tea and they talked about Hermione's classes and then about some new developments in defensive magic. They both subscribed to professional journals of magic and they kept up-to-date on the latest discoveries and research.

"I'm surprised they don't teach more defensive spell at Hogwart's, to be honest, especially considering the times. I mean, I've learned some new ones from this copy of _Munimentum_ that I have and-"

"Where did you get a copy of that? There aren't many left in the world from what I know," Remus said.

"Oh, well, Sev- I mean, Professor Snape leant me his copy," Hermione said. Remus coughed and choked on his tea.

"He _leant_ you his book?" he asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah. Considering the position I'm in, he thought I may do well to learn a few good spells like that," Hermione said.

"So working with him and being his Assistant…it has been, ah, bearable so far, shall we say?" Remus asked gently. Hermione considered it for a moment.

"Yes, actually. I mean, he's by no means outwardly pleasant, but he's not horrible," she said. Remus laughed.

"I'm glad to hear it," he said, but then looked more serious. "Hermione, I really am worried for you, though. I mean, you are in a precarious position. The Dark Lord thinking you are supplying him with information? That makes you a target. Now I know Severus is a very capable wizard, but he can't protect you from everything." Hermione looked down in her tea.

"I know. I mean, it's not a good situation. But it's better than what I expected. As soon as Lucius took me, I thought I was dead. The fact that I'm a live is a miracle," Hermione said. Remus sighed heavily.

"I am so sorry. I should have been more aware. It was my fault he was able to get you. It was a stupid mistake," he said heavily.

"We all make mistakes. It was as much my fault as it was yours. Please, don't blame yourself. Blame Lucius," Hermione said with a smile. Remus returned it weakly.

"The second he disappeared with you, I was so afraid-" he was cut off by a knock at the door. Severus entered.

"Ah, Severus, I was just having some tea with Hermione. Would you like to join us?" Remus asked. Hermione was amazed how kind and easy-going Remus always managed to be, the exception being around the full moon.

"No," Severus said so quickly and curtly Hermione almost laughed. "But seeing as it is Ms. Granger, I don't feel it necessary to talk in code. I've brought your Wolfsbane potion," he said as he sat a bottle of potion on Remus' desk. He then turned his attention to Hermione. "If you're done with your tea, we can get started early tonight," he said calmly. Hermione put her cup down and looked at Remus.

"Go ahead, Hermione. It was nice talking to you," Remus said genially. Hermione smiled and ran to catch up to Severus who had already left and was walking briskly down the hall.

They didn't speak until they got into the dungeons in Snape's classroom. He raised the wards on the door and turned to Hermione.

"Albus has decided I should tell you what I've been researching. Please," Severus said the last word in a way that said he was not asking, "do not interrupt. I might answer any questions you have after I finish explaining."

'You will answer some questions,' Hermione thought to herself, but just nodded.

"One of the Order's greatest weaknesses in the First War was the reluctance to use the Killing Curse. Dumbledore still feels the same way about using it, but seeing as the Dark Lord is as willing and ready as ever to use it, I've been trying to find a way to prevent the spell from working. When I asked about inducing death, this is the research I've been doing; to find a potion or spell that will induce death artificially while allowing the user to move around and use magic, with the intention of making the Killing Curse useless in a battle." Hermione's jaw dropped and her eyes widened. "Do you see the problem?" he added.

"Well," Hermione started, "I suppose you're looking for something with the same base as the Draught of the Living Death, but without the side effect of paralysis." Severus nodded. After a moment, Hermione added, "But doesn't the Killing Curse also separate the soul from the body? The same potion wouldn't stop that, would it?"

Severus quirked his face in an expression that was somewhere between a smirk and a smile.

"Yes, there is the bigger problem. You undoubtedly know about the Sorcerer's Stone?" Severus asked. Hermione nodded but was confused. She knew it to be destroyed after first year.

"As I'm sure you're aware, it was destroyed for fear of it getting in the wrong hands. However, Albus was wise enough to think there may come a time when we could use some of the stone's properties. You are familiar with the Elixir of Life?" Severus asked. Hermione's eyes widened.

"Yes! It has the ability to return a wizard or witch whose soul is separated from their body! Which is why Voldemort wanted it, right?" Hermione asked excitedly before thinking.

"Don't say His name!" Severus yelled so angrily that Hermione actually shrank away in fear. She hadn't seen Severus get angry that easily before. She stepped back from him, eyes wide.

Severus took a deep breath before recomposing himself. He felt a pang of shame to see how he had scared her.

"I-I," he struggled to find the words. "I apologize for my outburst." Hermione paused but took a tentative step back toward him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say it. It just- popped out," she said sheepishly. Severus nodded and continued.

"I have enough Elixir to use for this purpose, but none to waste," he explained.

"So why can't we just use the Elixir of Life by itself to prevent the soul from being torn away from the body permanently?" Hermione asked.

"It's complicated. The Killing Curse takes the soul away from the body but also shuts down all the organs immediately. Taking the Elixir by itself would not prevent organ damage. The soul would return to the body just to die from the organ failure. But if we induce the physical aspect of death ourselves, if we can find the right potion to combine with the Elixir, no harm will come to the body or soul from the Killing Curse whatsoever," Severus said.

"Why hasn't this been researched before? I mean like in the First War?" Hermione asked. Severus gave her a long, almost sad look.

"Because this is messing with Death itself. This is verging on necromancy. What I have been researching is of the Dark Arts. Which is why I am telling you and giving you the option to say no," Severus said and then took a step closer to look her in the eye. "Even if this is for the War, if the Ministry finds out about this project even after the war and even if we win this war, it is likely we could be imprisoned for doing this kind of work. Do not take this lightly," Severus said in a deadly serious tone. But she didn't even have to think about it.

"I'm in this. If this gives us a better chance, I don't care if we tread in the Dark Arts, as long as our intentions and use of the product are pure. We are only doing so to prevent worse things. I'm willing to pay any consequences if this means I can help to end this War," Hermione said very confidently and with her hands on her hips, daring him to argue.

Severus smiled. An actual smile. Not a smirk, but a smile, albeit a small one.

"I never took you to be a moral subjectivist," he said. Hermione paused. She hadn't really thought about it. If someone had asked her even one year ago if it was _ever _okay to dabble in the Dark Arts, she would have said no.

"Well this is war, isn't it?" Hermione said after some though. "Perspectives change. Unless you're in the middle of it, you can't understand or really judge why people do the things they do to protect others. To protect their loved ones."

"Indeed. War brings out the best and worst in people, but always brings out the best in innovation," Severus said in way that told her he had thought about it before. Hermione decided it was now or never, seeing as he was being unbelievably forward with her

"In that case, in the case that your trust me with this, will you be honest with me about some other things?" Hermione asked cautiously. Severus immediately looked uncertain.

"Such as?"

Hermione took a deep breath.

"What exactly have you told You-Know-Who is going on between us? What is it that all the Death Eaters know?" she began. Severus shifted.

"I have told Him that since His return, at the beginning of your fifth year, I have been seducing you. That I have succeeded to the point that I have gained your trust and you tell me things that the Order might not tell me. I told him that with you wrapped around my finger, Potter will be weak when it matters most. It is well-known that you are the…brains of the 'Golden Trio'. If I have the ability to control you, Potter's support will be corrupted," Severus said slowly.

"Why did He forgive the fact that you hadn't told him about our, um, _affair_ until now?" she asked, fidgeting with her robes.

"I told the Dark Lord at first you thought you were helping the Order by informing me, but over time I planted seeds of doubt in your mind. I made you see in the last year that the Order is corrupt and the world would be no better off if the Order and Dumbledore won the war. I told him I only wanted to bring you to him when I was sure you had been converted." Hermione was surprised by his honesty and decided to go for everything she had been wondering about.

"Why would Voldemort allow this to go on? I mean, he knows that you have gained the Order's trust back mostly. You probably know more things than I do about what the Order is doing. Why not just kill me, especially if he thinks I am the 'brains' backing Harry?" Severus shifted a little more and didn't answer immediately. Hermione waited patiently.

"I asked Him not to kill you as a favor. I think killing you was his original intention. But I have never asked him for anything else. The only other request I ever made of him was… ignored," Severus said surprisingly coldly. Hermione wondered what the other request had been, but decided not to press her luck.

"What reasons did you give for wanting to keep me alive?" she finally asked, afraid he would change his mind and erase her memory of this entire conversation. Again, he didn't answer immediately.

"I told him that I have… greatly enjoyed your company the last couple of years. That I have you conditioned to my, ah, physical liking, and that it would be a waste especially if you can still be manipulated to hinder any progress Potter or the Order makes. He let you live as a reward to me," Severus said, not meeting her eyes. Even if none of it was true, Severus did not like the idea of training a girl to be his whore.

"So he left me alive to keep you… pleased?" Hermione asked, trying to put it as nicely as she could.

"Yes."

"Considering that's what my life depends on to Him, doesn't He, um, check in on your memories to make sure that I'm, um, doing my job?" she asked awkwardly, avoiding his eyes.

"Yes. I am an accomplished Occlumens, though, and I have been able to fabricate other scenarios based on… a particular memory." As he said this, he actually hunched his shoulders in discomfort.

Hermione hated herself for having to ask.

"…But won't You-Know-Who eventually notice a certain level of repetition? I mean, eventually He would notice everything He sees is like an echo, right?" she asked.

"Well, I have been working on that as well. Trying to find a way to fabricate new scenarios without actually having to… do anything," he finished uncomfortably. Hermione nodded.

"So why was He being so... pleasant to me? To Him, I'm a- a Mudblood. Why feign niceties and trust?" Hermione asked.

"He is playing to the fantasy He thinks you have in your mind that He is the better choice between Him and the Order," he answered.

"Okay…thank you for being so honest with me. I don't mean to be a burden to you, with everything you already have to put up with," she said softly. Severus met her eyes for the first time in several minutes.

"Do not think of it that way. Think of it as you said before. This is your opportunity to do something." Hermione smiled. She guessed that was as close as Severus Snape ever came to giving a pep-talk.

"So what now?" she asked, eager to shake off the heavy moment.

"If you don't mind I was going to allow you to make some burn salve for the Infirmary. It seems my personal stores are also low," he said with a smirk. Hermione rubbed her arm where she had burned herself only the night before.

"But what about that book? Didn't you say we were going to retrieve it?"

"It would not be wise to bring you with me. Among other things the Order has sheltered you from is The Dark Lord's more… depraved activities and, um, voyeuristic habits. He orders female Muggle-borns and Muggles to be raped as he watches. If I brought you, He would most likely want me to, ah… entertain him," Severus said, with a strained look on his face.

"Oh…" Hermione was shocked by his brutal honesty about the rapes. Hermione always had the thought in the back of her mind that Death Eaters probably did more than just torture people with curses, but no one ever discussed it. Hermione then began to wonder is Severus had ever been called on to perform such awful activities. She did not want to think about it.

"Will you be okay to make the burn salve by yourself?" Severus asked.

"Yes."

"Good. I will be leaving now. I should hopefully not be gone long, but I never know…" Severus trailed off. Hermione nodded.

"Severus, please be careful," she said as he made his way to the door.

He stopped after he opened the door. He looked back at her as if he wanted to say something else, but settled to nod at her before shutting the door behind him, leaving her to work.

* * *

**Thank you for reading! Please review. **

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	13. It's Routine

**You guys are awesome, thank you for reviewing! Without further ado…**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

_Severus stopped after he opened the door. He looked back at Hermione as if he wanted to say something else, but settled to nod at her before shutting the door behind him, leaving her to work._

Hermione walked down a familiar dark hallway. It was adorned with similar decorations from the room she had healed Severus in. She could hear her own breath, her own pulse, both very rapid. The adrenaline flooding her system made every small noise like thunder; her robes swishing was a dull roar, her feet hitting the ground resounding crashes.

She soon found herself in front of a familiar door that led into a familiar circular room. She knew who would be on the other side of the door, who had summoned her.

She paused in front of the door even though she knew she shouldn't. _He_ had low tolerance for hesitance and unabashed fear. And Hermione was guilty of both at the moment.

She reached a hand toward to door when she heard a strangled cry. It sounded familiar. It was Severus. Her already trembling hand froze. She was terrified of what she would see when she opened the door.

"Enter." Hermione jumped. He was aware of her presence. And by the harsh cold tone in his voice, Hermione began to fear what she herself would face when she entered the room.

The door flew open and Hermione felt herself getting jerked inside roughly by a charm. She had to stifle and a cry when her eyes fell on Severus. He was crumpled and bleeding in the corner. She couldn't see him moving.

Hermione whipped around to face Voldemort who was twiddling Severus' wand between his long white fingers.

"It's always curious to me the different levels of pain different people are able to tolerate. Some people break almost immediately. Some," he said indicating the motionless Severus, "require a much more aggressive and intensive approach," he said slowly and calmly, as if talking about the weather. "It seems Severus has been keeping some interesting secrets from me. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

Hermione's throat clutched and felt her chest squeeze so tight she couldn't breathe. At first she thought it was a panic attack, but then she realized it was Voldemort doing it. Her chest was being crushed from the inside out, causing excruciating pain. But she couldn't scream for she could draw no breath.

Voldemort released the curse and let Hermione drop to the floor. She gasped for breath even thought every inhale caused extraordinary pain. She didn't try to get up. She merely looked from where she was lying across the floor where her eyes met Severus' gaze. She was relieved to see his eyebrows raise because it meant he was alive.

"Hermione.." Severus gasped out, desperately trying to tell Hermione something. Hermione lifted her head. She heard the Dark Lord moving closer. If Severus had something to tell her it needed to be quick, before his next curse.

"Hermione…"

"Hermione!"

"Huh?" Hermione mumbled, the book she fell asleep on toppling to the floor.

"Hermione, it's morning. You fell asleep in the common room again. You looked like you were having a fit," Harry said, looking concerned. Hermione blinked the sleep away and took in her surroundings. She was at Hogwarts. Not with Voldemort.

The first time she had had that dream, it took her several minutes to calm down. She had had to run down to breakfast to see Severus alive and (as always) glaring at his toast to assure herself that it had just been a dream. She was now fairly quick to recover after the nightmare, but she always woke up tired afterward. She didn't know whether she preferred these or the other nightmares she had. About two nights a week she had nightmares; sometimes she would have one, and other times to other dream.

"You don't look good, Hermione," Ron said.

"Oh, thank you Ronald," Hermione quipped, trying to discretely wipe a line of saliva from her lips.

"You know what I mean. You're up all night every other night doing all this research for Snape. I say sleep is more important that that greasy git," Ron replied.

"I'm sure you do think that, but I happen to find the research I'm doing very interesting. I'll get to bed extra early tonight, okay?" Hermione pleaded with the two, not wanting a Hermione-style lecture aimed at herself.

Ron and Harry exchanged looks but agreed and waited for Hermione to get changed so they could all go down to breakfast.

As they entered the Great Hall, Hermione quickly surveyed the professors at the table and saw Severus was there and, as always, glaring at his food. She looked away quickly so he wouldn't catch her looking at him. It apparently annoyed him. But he wasn't as impatient as he used to be with her.

It had been over a month since Severus had retrieved _Immortalirituals _and they had been making good progress with their research. They had successfully singled out all the ingredients they would absolutely have to use, and they were now trying to find the right combinations of ingredients to cancel the undesired effects.

And quite unexpectedly, Hermione found working with Severus to be almost pleasant. He had an incredible natural and deep understanding of potions, and when Hermione could catch him in the right mood, he was a very good teacher. In fact, she was pretty sure she was the only one who ever received such attention from Severus where Potions was concerned. She was quick to learn and she was sure he would tolerate nothing less.

Hermione saw as she finished breakfast that Severus left the Great Hall in the general direction of the dungeons. It was a Tuesday so Hermione did not have her first class until 10. Severus had no classes until after noon so they had begun to continue their research on Tuesday and Thursday mornings as well as most evenings.

They had sunk into a comfortable routine of researching and checking each other's notes and results. When Hermione sensed Severus was in a decent mood, she would ask questions here and there about various potion ingredients and different potions. When she had first started asking questions he had seemed annoyed, but he apparently found it more annoying for her to prance around, glancing at him but holding in all her questions.

With the first questions she asked each day, Severus would begin with a sigh and occasionally a rub of his temples, but would soon answer all her questions thoroughly and thoughtfully. She didn't understand why he couldn't be like this in class. He was capable of being an incredible teacher. Hermione honestly felt he found it fulfilling to impart his knowledge on an eager learner, even if he would never admit it. Hermione found enough satisfaction in the fact that he was actually teaching her.

Hermione stepped in his classroom and Severus looked up.

"Ms. Granger, are you ready to begin?" he began with what he asked every day, word-for-word.

"Yes, sir," Hermione responded, trying not to sound too eager.

"I was looking over your notes from last week about combining powdered asp fang and bulbadox powder. You obviously have no knowledge of the Penlanger Effect, unless you wish all takers of the potion to die a rather pointless death from instant dehydration," he said condescendingly, looking over her notes at her. Hermione knew better than to take offense.

"Well since I have never heard of the Penlanger Effect, I'm sure it is not in any textbook you have allowed me to read," she quipped, "So please do tell me or at least direct me to the correct textbook to consult. Perhaps I'll find the correct information in the same book that you consulted when you wrote notes about a possible potion with both dragon bile and diced Graphorn, for surely you knew that combination is equally as lethal," Hermione finished smoothly. She had been waiting to use that one for over three days. The flash of confusion in Severus' eyes gave Hermione all the satisfaction in the world.

Severus glared and quickly pulled out a thick textbook to check his own alleged mistake. The slight frown that appeared quickly turned to Hermione. She knew she had won…kind of.

"Hermione, you can start over with a new potion base. This one is useless," he glowered, handing her notes back.

"Of course," she smiled. She always smiled when she could manage. It bothered him.

Severus grumbled something under his breath and returned to his desk. He pulled out several books and referenced them often. He obviously wasn't going to make another mistake for Hermione to find and hold over him.

Twenty minutes later, Hermione asked a question.

"Why are Jobberknoll feathers an unstable ingredient in any potions with aconite?" Hermione questioned. She waited a moment, but he said nothing. She went back to work. He obviously wasn't in the mood.

Then he sighed heavily. Hermione smiled and awaited the knowledge he was about to impart.

* * *

**I know it was short, but this semester is killer... :)**

**Please review!**


	14. Darkening Skies

**So it has been a while since I updated, but all for the good. I have edited all of the chapters. Nothing that changes the plot, but some of the personal dynamics have been tweaked and (in my opinion) improved. I would urge anyone who has been reading for a while to go back and re-read/skim.**

**I started out the story not knowing what I would do with it, but now I know. So please forgive the break in updates, but enjoy. :)**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

Halloween was drawing near. The leaves were changing colors, the weather was cooling down, and the school grounds were beautiful. This was usually Hermione's favorite time of year.

As Hermione was absently purifying Flobberworm mucus to use for a batch of Boil-Cure potion she realized she hadn't paid enough attention to the weather. It was probably wonderful and she usually enjoyed taking long walks around the grounds this time of year.

"Something wrong?" a familiar voice rumbled from a few feet away. Hermione looked up and to see that Severus was staring at her. She realized she had stopped working and had just been staring off into space.

"Oh, nothing. Just remembering something I need to do" Hermione said as she looked back down.

"What you need to do is concentrate," Severus said in his professor voice, though without the usual amount of disdain reserved for students.

Hermione took a moment to readjust her gloves which had slipped off slightly in her reverie. The gloves were given to Hermione by Severus. They were excellent work gloves, protecting her hands from heat, harsh chemicals, and other potion ingredients but she wasn't sure what to think of them. They were fancy looking, nicely-fitting black gloves and were nice enough to wear outside the classroom. Severus happened to leave them on her work bench on her birthday a couple of weeks previously though she had no idea of they were intended as a birthday present. She decided it wasn't worth the time to ponder, and certainly not worth wearing Severus' patience to ask such an awkward question.

"Hmm," was all Hermione responded with as she looked back down at her work.

* * *

It was Saturday evening and Hermione had just awaken from a nap, thankfully with no nightmares. Hermione had left the dungeons a couple of hours previously. She had spent most of her Saturday morning and afternoon doing extra work with Severus. The extra time had become necessary with so much time going into their secret project, but it was not unpleasant- most days.

Hermione decided to go on a walk around the grounds. She had neglected to do so for far too long. After getting dressed warmly, she headed down from the dormitory. In the Great Hall, she found Ron and Harry playing Wizard's Chess. Like always, Ron was winning. As Hermione approached, Ron took Harry's king with a satisfied grin while Harry slumped back in his chair.

"Don't you know you always lose to Ron?" Hermione teased. Harry looked up in mock surprise.

"Hermione! It's been so long since we've seen you we forgot what you look like," Harry grinned. "Heading out somewhere?" Ron added.

"Yeah I was going to go for a walk. Would you guys like to join me?" They nodded as they put up the chess set.

They passed Draco who was sitting with Crabbe and Goyle as they walked out of the castle. It was the same as it had been since the beginning of the term; they only stared at the trio and said nothing. Hermione found it very unnerving. One they were out on the grounds and out of earshot, Harry turned to the other two.

"What do you think Lucius has told his son? Draco hasn't said a word to any of us since the beginning of the term," Harry said. Hermione's stomach clenched at the sound of Lucius' name.

"I don't know but it bothers me," Ron muttered. "The bastard better not be playing at anything. What do you think Hermione?"

Hermione thought for a moment and chose her words carefully.

"Obviously Lucius didn't buy the story that I am loyal to Voldemort," she began slowly, "But as I told you, Voldemort also made it clear to Lucius not to mess with me. I'm guessing that warning extends to all Malfoys." She had told Harry and Ron very few details of either time she had been at Voldemort's headquarters for obvious reasons.

"Hmm," Harry and Ron mumbled in unhappy unison.

"I don't see how You-Know-Who believes it either," said Ron who still would not use Voldemort's actual name out loud. "I mean, I know you said you and Snape went on some mission to prove loyalty, or something like that, but I don't see why He would believe a non-Pure Blood was loyal to him."

The trio stopped at a small sheltered cove along the perimeter of the Great Lake. Again, Hermione carefully chose what she said.

"I don't think Voldemort cares if I am loyal to Him exactly. He really just wanted to see that I would do whatever Se- uh, Professor Snape told me to. He thinks he controls Snape, so if He think Snape controls me, then I imagine Voldemort is happy with that."

Harry glared slightly. He still wasn't convinced that Snape was completely on their side.

"Now that was just bloody confusing," Ron half-heartedly joked.

"Why does Voldemort think Snape can control you?" Harry asked as if he had never really thought about it before. Hermione froze for a moment; she didn't know how to explain it without saying something unnecessary.

"Well…goodness I don't know how much Dumbledore wants me to say," Hermione stalled for a moment. "Basically, the story is ever since Voldemort's return, Professor Snape has been manipulating me. It's fairly well-known how much I enjoy academics, so the story for Voldemort is that Professor Snape began paying a lot of attention to me in class then in tutoring, then gained my trust over time and established himself as a mentor to me and he's been using that to manipulate my loyalties," Hermione said.

"I don't like it," Harry muttered after a moment.

"Listen Harry, I don't know if I'll ever be able to convince you that Snape is on our side, but think about it. He risked his life to save mine. He could have easily let me die, but he didn't," Hermione said.

"Well what if he doing exactly what that 'story' said? It seems to me he has your trust and he has been paying a lot of 'academic attention' to you," Ron said timidly, looking from Harry to Hermione. Hermione realized they must have planned what they were saying.

At the same moment she was angry, she also had a realization that there _was_ a possibility they could be right. Severus was an incredibly intelligent, cunning man and a very good actor. She had seen this all first hand. She always had faith in who Dumbledore trusted, but for the first time she really considered the fact that Severus might be able to fool Dumbledore.

At that moment, the semblance of security Hermione had created for her reality shattered. She quickly tried to cover any sign that they had rattled her.

"I'm not telling you to trust him blindly or even at all, but just consider the possibility that he really is on our side," Hermione said with much less confidence than she would have had five minutes earlier. Harry and Ron didn't look happy but nodded in agreement.

"We don't mean to worry you or anything. It's just… we know you. You get so wrapped up in what you're doing that sometimes… I don't know, you don't always take a step back and see the big picture," Harry said carefully, afraid to incur her wrath.

Hermione was annoyed, but she saw they were saying this out of concern. She sighed.

"I appreciate your worry. And yes, I suppose I can be like that sometimes. But… for now you have to trust me," Hermione finished, not knowing what else to say.

No one said anything else as the trio stared out over the lake which was reflecting the darkening sky.

* * *

In the dungeons, Severus cursed as he felt his Dark Mark burn. Using the Mark as a pathway of communication, Voldemort spoke directly into Severus' mind.

'Severus I need you. I need you to bring the girl as well. Now.'

There was a sharp pain as Voldemort broke the connection and Severus sighed heavily. He clasped his hands behind his head in frustration and worry, but decided he would go to the Dark Lord himself and try to convince Him he could not simply take the girl off of the grounds. He did not want Hermione invloved in whatever this was.

* * *

The three returned to the castle for dinner which began in tense silence. Hermione broke it by telling them, and this time honestly, that she would consider what they said.

"You know, I am aware that I'm not always right," Hermione said as light-heartedly as she could. Ron choked on his pudding and Hermione responded with a glare. "I mean, it was me who ended up trying to turn into Millicent Bulstrode's cat second year…"

At this Harry and Ron laughed. Hermione smiled as she felt the tension ease.

* * *

Hermione flung herself on her bed as dramatically as she could manage after dinner. It had been a long day, and a stressful one.

She began thinking if Harry and Ron could possibly be right. Did she trust Severus too soon, too easily? She could see it would be within his power to fool her and Dumbledore and that scared her. Severus just plain scared her on some level. He was an enigma wrapped in dark robes. He was unpredictable, inconsistent, and frustrating to deal with. He was also incredibly intelligent and powerful. But somehow, even after Ron and Harry had shaken her up, she couldn't believe that Severus was truly loyal to Voldemort. She had seen a side of Severus that she was beginning to believe no else had, or at least not in a very long time. And there was no way she could explain that to Harry or Ron. She sighed and decided all she could do was trust Severus, but she would have to be careful as always.

With that, Hermione began to doze off.

* * *

Severus hit the floor and felt blood ooze from his nose and drip from his mouth.

"I did not tell you to bring me excuses, I told you to bring me the girl!" Voldemort hissed as he hit Severus with another curse which slip open the skin on his back and arm in long slow gashes. "No return and do what you must to bring her to me!" With that, Voldemort flung Severus from his room with a curse.

When Severus was sure that no one was around, he took a moment to lay on the ground and compose himself. He guessed this might be the Dark Lord's reaction, but he considered it worth the effort. He slowly picked himself up but stumbled and flinched as his wounds were stretched by the motion. He grimaced at the pain and at the though that he would be going to Madame Pomfrey yet again this week. And that Hermione would be here yet again at Voldemort's mercy.

Severus breathed deeply. It was all he could do somedays.

* * *

Hermione awoke to tapping at the window. She tried to ignore it, hoping one of her dorm mates would deal with whatever it was. But neither of them stirred. Hermione grumbled and looked up to see an owl hovering outside the window. It struck Hermione as odd. Owls should only coming during breakfast.

She quickly wrapped a robe around herself and opened the window. The owl dropped a letter and flew off. She closed the window quickly to keep out the cold and picked up the letter. It was address to _Ms. Hermione Granger_.

She rubbed her eyes to fend sleep off as she opened it.

_Ms. Granger,_

_Please come meet me in my office as quickly as you can. Please come alone._

_Most Sincerely,_

_Albus Dumbledore_

Hermione tensed. This couldn't be good. She looked around at realized it couldn't be any later than 4am. She quickly dressed and grabbed her wand, worrying the entire time what this was about.

She quietly descended the stairs to the Common room which was empty (thankfully) and then headed to Dumbledore's office. When she reached the stone gargoyle, her tired brain couldn't remember the password. She nearly jumped out of her skin when someone said her name.

"Oh Remus! You scared me," Hermione said to the disheveled man before her. "What are you doing here?"

"I just got a letter from Dumbledore summoning me to his office. It said it was Order business," Remus explained, stifling a yawn. "Were you summoned as well?"

"Reese's Cup," Hermione said. "The password," she smilingly explained to the barely awake, confused Lupin. "And yes, I just got a letter as well." Confusion turned into worried. Hermione looked Lupin over. He looked bedraggled and had dark circles under his eyes. Hermione remembered the full moon was fairly recent.

They ascended the stairs together and heard Dumbledore say "Enter." Hermione entered to meet several pairs of tired eyes. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Kingsley, Moody, and Snape were waiting, looking impatient.

"My apologies for not being here sooner. The full moon was two nights ago, and I did not awake so easily," Remus explained quietly to the stern eyes as he stood beside them. Snape flared his nose and grunted disdainfully.

"Um… what's going on?" Hermione asked after a few more moments.

"Professor Snape has informed me of instructions that Voldemort has given him when he was summoned a short time ago," Dumbledore began explaining. Hermione noticed Severus twitch slightly at the sound of Voldemort's name. "I believe the Order should be informed immediately to prevent any suspicion or misunderstanding. I believe last time some people felt left out of the loop and were quite unhappy." While Dumbledore was talking, Hermione looked at Severus who did not return the eye contact.

"Well, what is it?" she asked.

"It seems Professor Snape is to take you with him on some sort of task, but even he does not know the details," McGonagall said with annoyance in her voice.

"Minerva, please. Severus has told us all he knows," Dumbledore said sternly.

"What do you mean there are no details?" Hermione asked looking from one person to another.

"We mean Severus expects us to release you to him blindly with no knowledge of where you will be going or what you will be doing," Kingsley said calmly and evenly, though there was a hint of anger in the underlying iciness of his voice.

"If you would rather have me question and directly disobey the Dark Lord, I'm sure that will work out just fine for Ms. Granger and myself," Severus returned equally icily.

"_Hermione_ is who I am concerned for. Let's be clear on that," Kingsley quipped.

"That's enough!" Moody snarled. "That's not helping."

"We came here to discuss this and take the best course of action," Dumbledore said loudly and sternly enough to effectively quiet all grumbling.

"The best course of action would be to put Ms. Granger in hiding and keep her away," Moody said gruffly. Severus was about to respond when Hermione had had enough and cut in.

"Best for who, exactly, to force me into hiding? For you so you can put it out of your mind?" she half-yelled. "You are talking about me as if I'm not even here!"

Everyone was effectively shocked into silence by her outburst.

"As thrilled as Professor Snape probably is about this, I would say he is only asking what he must," Hermione continued. If she wasn't busy ranting, Hermione may have noticed a quick smirk flash across Severus' face. "Putting me in hiding is out of the question. I did not Obliviate my parents just so that I can sit safely in hiding and let all the 'grown-ups' to the work. And to be quite honest, I don't see many people acting like grown-ups right now," Hermione fumed. She then slapped her hand over her mouth in shock and horror of what she had just said.

Even Severus looked mildly surprised at the full-length outburst.

"Despite, Ms. Granger's blush of regret, I would have to agree with her," Dumbledore said, making many heads turn sharply to look at him. "If I did not believe Ms. Granger was capable of handling herself under this kind of pressure, I would have forced her into hiding myself the second Severus kindly returned her to us that night."

Hermione felt a lump rising in her throat.

"You can't expect us to want her to risk her life like this, especially not knowing what You-Know-Who is wanting them to do?" McGonagall said exasperatedly.

"I am exceedingly happy we actually know when you are sending them to endanger their lives, but what is it you expect us to say?" Kingsley asked.

"What is it you expect of Hermione?" Remus asked, speaking up for the first time, but was addressing Severus and not Dumbledore.

"What I expect is for you to trust my trust in Severus. He is not taking this lightly and will put Ms. Granger's life before his own should the occasion call for it," Dumbledore calmly replied to Kingsley.

"What I expect of Ms. Granger is for her to keep her mouth shut and do nothing to endanger us, despite her apparent delusions of grandeur concerning being involved in all this," Severus replied coldly to Remus. Hermione felt as if she had been slapped across the face as she heard the words from his mouth.

"Will you explain what you know about this particular task, Severus?" Dumbledore asked. Severus sighed heavily.

"The Dark Lord has asked me to bring the girl with me to get instructions, and refused to tell me anything until I have the girl with me," Severus explained. Being referred to as 'the girl' was like another slap to Hermione.

"I do not know what he wished us to do, or where, but I will inform you of anything I can as soon as possible. And yes, I will keep the girl safe," Severus continued coldly as if it annoyed him.

Hermione was clenching her fists so tightly in righteous anger that her nails were digging into the skin on her palms.

"If that's all, I have kept the Dark Lord waiting long enough. If anyone disagrees, I invite you to stop me," Severus threatened. When no one moved, Severus looked to Dumbledore who nodded somberly.

"You will know something as soon as I can let you know," Severus finished. He then strode forward and grabbed Hermione by the arm as if she were a petulant child and led her out of Dumbledore's office and down the stairs.

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**Please review!**


	15. Darkening Eyes

**Thank you for the reviews!**

**I'm on Spring Break so I've finally had time to continue writing.**

**I do have one thing to discuss. I have had a few reviewers ask about the necessity of some of the darker aspects of my story. To be honest, there are some things I'm not sure if I should do with the story or not, but at the end of the day I don't think it would remain true to human (or even wizard) nature to always or even mostly have things happen nicely.**

**That being said, I still enjoy getting even negative critiques because it challenges me as an author and makes me decide who I am **_**as**_** an author. So again, thank you all very much. I read and appreciate every single review :)**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

_"You will know something as soon as I can let you know," Severus finished. He then strode forward and grabbed Hermione by the arm as if she were a petulant child and led her out of Dumbledore's office and down the stairs._

For the sake of _not_ acting like the petulant child, Hermione gritted her teeth and said nothing as they walked down the spiral staircase and out into the corridor. Severus led her around a corner and stopped.

Hermione wrenched her arm out of his grasp as forcefully as she could to make a point. As she did, Severus gasped in apparent pain and withdrew his arm as quickly as she had. Ignoring it for the sake of keeping her anger alive, Hermione glared deeply at Severus. She didn't even know what to say to express her outrage at his behavior toward her.

" 'The girl?' " she finally managed to sputter out, " 'Delusions of grandeur?' After… all this, that's your opinion of me?" she fumed at him, though she tried to keep her voice down. Enraging her even more, Severus simply looked bored at her outburst.

"Obviously," he said lazily after a moment, though with a hint of ice.

Hermione shook her head, mouth agape, unsure if he was being sarcastic or not.

"Because nothing would be less suspicious than me singing your praises to the Order. They would obviously have no questions if I were to treat you differently than the other petulant children I usually deal with," he said icily. The way he said 'petulant children' made Hermione realize he had probably used Legilimency on her, and she had let her mental guard down in her rage. He hadn't been bored, he had been breaking into her mind.

Hermione was at a loss for words as she realized she had just made an arse of herself. The most sinister of smirks crossed his face.

"Why Ms. Granger, I have never seen you so red. Is this what it would look like if you did not know the answer to a question during a lesson?"

It almost seemed he was teasing her, but there was still a strong presence of annoyance in his voice.

"What's wrong with your arm?" she quickly decided to change the subject.

"A question I will leave unanswered," he said gruffly, gripping it absent-mindedly. "Now listen closely. The Dark Lord has summoned both of us and as I said before, I have no idea what for. This is… most unusual, and most likely not good. Before we leave, I need to know that you are in control of your emotions and faculties," he said.

Hermione decided to bite her tongue. She took a deep breath to calm herself and pull her mental defenses up. She couldn't afford any mistakes around Voldemort or any of His followers. She nodded.

"I also need to know that in this precarious situation, you will do as I say without question for your own safety and for the Dark Lord's benefit," Severus added, his voice losing the coldness, but gaining severity.

Hermione really had to think about that one for a moment. It had been a question on her mind; could she, should she put her complete trust in him? Put her life in his hands willingly? She was considering more than he had really asked, but it was more than a simple question to Hermione. She looked back and forth between his impenetrable eyes and bit her lip.

She suddenly remembered the night she had used the Cruciatus Curse on Lucius Malfoy. She had burst into tears afterwards, and Severus had comforted her. He had pulled her against his chest and embraced her. And then to make things easier on her, he had taken her to his house. Severus struck Hermione as an intensely personal, private man. But he had pushed that aside for her when she had really needed it.

Hermione looked down for moment then met his eyes again. She nodded in agreement. He turned around to lead the way out of the castle but paused.

"They do not know what you have had to endure," he suddenly said, turning to look at her.

"What?" Hermione asked, honestly not tracking his train of thought.

"The Order. They know of nothing that would make me treat you differently than any other student," he said, gauging her reaction. Hermione realized he was explaining his behavior in Dumbledore's office, and that that was as close to an apology as she would get. She nodded again.

There was a surprisingly comfortable and easy silence between them as they walked out into the dark early morning, despite where they were headed. As they passed through the Great Hall, Hermione saw many carved pumpkins aglow and floating in the air which made her realize it was Halloween morning.

Once outside the warded gates, Severus held out his arm. Hermione unleashed her neurotic side when she couldn't tell if he meant her to grab his arm or hand, but she remembered she needed to be calm and collected.

'To hell with petty worries,' she thought as she put her hand on his. She had put on the gloves he had given her, and had she looked up she would have seen a very faint look of surprise on Severus' face as he took note of it.

He had indeed given them to her as a birthday present, though he decided he would never admit that they had indeed been a birthday gift. He had travelled to one of his favorite potion's shops over the weekend before Hermione's birthday. He had stared at them for about 5 minutes in the shop before deciding to buy them.

Severus closed his hand around Hermione's and Apparated them to a now familiar metal door. She took her hand from Severus' to hug herself in her robes. Wherever this was, it was colder than outside Hogwart's.

Severus put a hand on her shoulder, completely shielding her from the wind with his robes. As they walked closely together to the door, Hermione noticed his scent. She had been close to him before, but had never taken the time to consider what he smelled of.

He was wearing some sort of cologne. It smelled good but was subtle which told Hermione it was expensive. He also smelled of something she couldn't quite place, but her thoughts were disrupted as the metal door opened.

As they stepped inside, Severus pulled Hermione protectively closer to him. They went through the same room where there was always several Death Eaters standing about, but it was empty. They continued on to where Voldemort's personal chamber was located and as they approached the Dark Lord himself appeared through the doorway.

"Ah, Severus, Ms. Granger," he said with a glittering smile on his face. Hermione did not like how fiery and excited Voldemort's eyes looked.

Severus bowed his head and Hermione followed suit. As they bowed, Severus dropped his hand from Hermione's shoulder to her waist. It was then that Hermione realized the difference. Severus was protective when it was just them alone, but he changed to possessive around Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Hermione decided to follow through with her trust, and chose to believe it was a conscious change that Severus made.

"Follow," was all Voldemort said as he turned sharply and walked away. They followed a couple of paces behind. Voldemort walked down several corridors and Hermione began to realize how large the compound had to be.

They came to a grand door which opened upon their approach. There was a great deal of noise, like a great crowd, coming from the room. Voldemort entered and indicated with his hand that Severus and Hermione should follow. Despite her efforts to remain completely calm, Hermione's heart was beating out of her chest.

When they entered, the sight that befell Hermione made her light-headed. They were standing on a large balcony that overlooked a room that was easily twices the size of Hogwart's Great Hall. And it was packed full of Death Eaters, at least three hundred. Hermione knew that the Death Eaters would grow in numbers, but she had tried to imagine a smaller number. She snuck a look up at Severus whose expression was serious but untelling. He gently squeezed his hand on her waist to acknowledge her, but did not look down.

"Friends," Voldemort said, commanding silence from the room which quickly came despite the number of people. "Tonight, as you know, will be an experiment. All who have answered my summon are to be a part of this experiment. We will launch our assault on Hogwart's to test is to test the defenses now that the Ministry's security enhancements have been dismantled. Hogwart's defenses may still be too great for us to overcome, but there is a chance they are not. You will find this out. If the defenses fail, you will take Hogwart's and I will join you. In that case, tonight… is ours," roaring applause followed Voldemort's words which were chilling to Hermione. "So, let us try and make tonight ours. Go."

The doors down on the level of the crowd opened. The cold draft Hermione felt indicated that the doors opened to the outside. Hermione remained calm on the surface, but was confused and worried.

"So sorry Severus that you won't be joining us. Seems that you'll be baby-sitting," Bellatrix giggled a few feet away as she entered the balcony, swaying in a demented dance.

"Bellatrix," Voldemort snapped, warning her. "Go." Bellatrix look put-out at being reprimanded by the Dark Lord, but quickly recovered with another smirk.

"Yes, my Lord," she complied and left the balcony to join the crowd which was quickly exiting.

"Severus, I believe you now get the gist of tonight's plans," Voldemort began with a sly grin. "Tonight is the night that I hope Hogwart's will fall."

Though Hermione willed herself to remain calm, she couldn't help her widened eyes and rapid pulse.

"I have been long researching the wards that protect the school. Thanks to a few ministry workers who were convinced to talk, I am now aware of most of the Ministry's security measures set up around Hogwart's," Voldemort said wickedly. "Who knew that an Unspeakable would speak so freely with just a little encouragement," he added as an afterthought. "And as a diversion to the Aurors, we will simultaneously be attacking the Ministry of Magic and a few select nearby Muggle communities. They won't know what hit them."

Hermione barely heard Him over the blooding pounding in her ears. Hundreds of Death Eaters were off to attack Hogwart's, the Ministry and Muggle civilians. The latter were people that had no chance of defending themselves. There was no honor with Voldemort. Hermione looked up to Severus again. He looked very passive, emotionless. It was actually unnerving to Hermione. She understood he couldn't react negatively, but he was eerily convincing.

"I see, my Lord," Severus said.

"I hope you do not take offense to me not telling you of this… I could not risk someone being able to find out. I understand Dumbledore is an accomplished Legilimens," Voldemort said as if waiting to see what Severus would do. "You are wondering why I have called you here?"

"I do not question your commands, my Lord," Severus said and slightly squeezed Hermione waist again. She remained silent, though her heart was ramming against her ribcage.

"Of course, but curiosity is only natural," Voldemort mused as he slowly approached the two. "You see, there has been a great deal of talking lately among my followers. Talking that I would like to put an end to. I'm sure it is no secret to you that many still question where your loyalties lie."

Severus nodded.

"Well, I am going to ask you and Ms. Granger to remain here during the duration of this onslaught. A mission that is simple enough, is it not?" Voldemort asked slyly.

"Yes, My Lord. But to what end?" Severus ventured cautiously.

"Well, anyone loyal to Dumbledore would not sit idly by and allow an attack on the school that could result in the destruction of the school, the deaths of Mudbloods, and of course the capture of Harry Potter. You will remain here, and be uninvolved in the attack so that no one can claim you tried to help the other side. And you remaining here doing nothing during the attack will be the final task to prove your loyalty. I will not tolerate anymore of the same doubts about you after this," Voldemort finished and resumed pacing.

"And the girl?" Severus asked.

"What about her?" Voldemort stopped and moved his eyes to meet Hermione's. Her mental defenses were up and she willed herself to remain in control and not break the eye contact.

"Why is she here?"

"Should the attack succeed and my followers gain access to Hogwart's, I do not have faith that some would… obey my orders to not harm the girl. Calling both of you here is a measure of protection for both of you, and a measure of loyalty for you," Voldemort finished. "Now... Ms. Granger?" Hermione's heart stopped as Voldemort addressed her.

"Y-yes?"

"You know your way to the room that you and Severus occupied before?" Voldemort asked and moved directly in front of her, staring into her eyes intently. Hermione nodded even though she wasn't actually sure of the way.

"Good. Why don't you head in that direction. I have a few things to discuss with Severus alone," he said smoothly. He grasped one of Hermione's hands in His own and she jumped.

"There is no need for nerves, girl. You would know if you were in trouble," Voldemort smirked darkly and placed a polite kiss on Hermione's knuckles. The skin that his lips touched burned. "You may go." Hermione made an awkward bow of her head.

Severus then stepped forward, letting go of Hermione. Without Severus beside her, Hermione felt very small and vulnerable. She quickly turned without a glance at Severus and left the two on the balcony.

She walked down the hallway and turned a corner but stopped. She pointed her wand at her ears and whispered _"Amplicado."_ She wanted to hear what was so important to discuss with Severus. The spell was of Hermione's invention and not quite perfected. The voices sounded distorted but she could still hear well enough.

"- and not to mention you seemed hesitant to bring her here. You seem quite... protective. Why is that Severus?" Voldemort whispered dangerously

"As you said yourself My Lord, I do not trust many people to follow your orders to not harm the girl," Severus replied. Hermione could tell by his tone he was choosing his words very carefully.

There was a moment of silence.

"You seem quite concerned for her. Too concerned, I wonder?" Voldemort asked softly, a whisper full of threat.

"No," Severus said coldly, as if insulted. "I only wonder what use she will have to you when this is done, should 'tonight be ours,'" Severus continued, slightly changing the topic.

"She is still important whether tonight is a success or not. Friend of Harry Potter, a well-placed pawn. Also, I allowed you to keep her as a present, a reward. She is still yours... Now if you are done or bored with her, there are several others who would love to have her…"

"No, my Lord. I only wondered," Severus said.

"Ah Severus. You remember the last time your concern for a woman ended... most unfortunately. I would hate to see that happen again," Voldemort said in mock concern. If Severus said anything else, Hermione could not hear it.

It seemed the conversation was nearly over so Hermione hurried down the hallway so as not to be noticed. As she walked, she wondered what other woman Voldemort was referencing. Whatever the story was, it didn't sound like it had a happy ending. Hermione felt ashamed that she still felt somewhat jealous.

Hermione walked down many corridors, almost getting lost twice. For a moment, thought, she felt safe because she knew all the Death Eaters were gone from the complex, but immediately rebuking herself for thinking in such a way because she knew where the Death Eaters were headed.

Hermione finally found a familiar room with a large canopied bed. She threw down her robe and sat on the bed, putting her head in her hands. As she sat there, Death Eaters were approaching an unsuspecting Hogwarts. Even if Hogwart's defenses were very strong with Dumbledore's own protective spells, could they stand up to an army of Death Eaters?

Her thoughts were interrupted as Severus entered the room. Hermione's head snapped up to meet his eyes.

"What else did He tell you?" Hermione probed instantly, wondering if he would tell her.

"Don't ask me, I will not tell you," Severus said harshly. He sat in an armchair facing Hermione. There were several moments of tense silence.

"What are we going to do? Are Hogwart's defenses good enough to withstand an attack like this? He said any protections the Miistry has put in would be disabled, but what about all the others? All the old protections from centuries past, and Dumbledore's own magic? Will those protections stand?" Hermione asked softly after a several moments of dark silence.

Severus shook his head. "I honestly don't know, especially with the number of them… I don't know. You remember the Dark Lord once walked the halls of Hogwart's... He had a feel for the magical protections as much as you do, and He is just as smart."

"And there's no way to alert anyone?" Hermione asked shakily. She started to curse herself as she felt tears welling up in her eyes.

Severus looked at her with an odd expression when he heard her shaky voice.

"The Dark Lord has invested a lot of time and resources into the defenses here at His headquarters. No owls leave without the contents of letter being known to Him, no Patronus can make it out of here with a message. We cannot leave. I do not know what I could do," Severus said, resting his chin on his clasped hands.

Hermione hated herself as she felt a tear roll down her cheek. She didn't even know that anyone was in danger, but she couldn't help it. Everything felt so dark and uncertain.

"Don't." Severus said sharply. Hermione looked up. He looked very uncomfortable. "Don't cry. I'm sure your friends will be safe."

Hermione thought about her friends at Hogwarts that she was worrying about. They had all been through so much together, and she wanted to help them this time as well, but she had no way to communicate with them…

"Wait, I have an idea!" Hermione jumped up, causing Severus to jump. Hermione started emptying the pockets of her robe. She had expanded them magically and had a bad habit of not cleaning them out… ever. But in this case, it might be a good thing.

"What are you going on about?" Severus asked annoyedly.

Hermione finally felt her hand grasp around a cold smooth object and she pulled it out in her hand.

"And what good will a galleon do?" Severus asked scathingly, looking at the object in her hand

"Well I do have a question before I let my hopes get up anymore. Does You-Know-Who have any protection against a message being relayed through a Protean Charm?" Hermione asked, wiping away the tears that had betrayed her. She had found one of the enchanted galleons that she had charmed to communicate with the 'Dumbledore's Army'/'Defense Association' members during fifth year.

Severus stared at Hermione a moment while he though back to all the defenses he knew Voldemort had put up.

"I don't believe so, but I am not sure. Why?" Severus asked, looking from Hermione's eyes to the galleon.

"Well if you remember the organization that Harry began fifth year… and you remember Umbridge," Hermione said, spitting otu Umbridge's name. The look of loathing on Severus face as Hermione mentioned Umbridge told Hermione he remembered. "Well we decided to keep meeting, obviously, after she banned all unapproved student organizations. This is what I came up with so that all the members could communicate and know when to meet without being caught," Hermione finished.

"That was two years ago. Who else other than you would be able to keep track of on object after that long?" Severus asked, the tone on his voice not giving Hermione any hope.

Hermione bit her lip and thought for a moment.

"I know for a fact that Harry keeps his 'galleon' on his bedside table. It reminds him of what we are all capable of doing together. The DA was a special experience for so many others too, I'm sure some still have it around. If we send a warning message, it just takes one person to get the message to Dumbledore," Hermione said with determination in her eyes. She knew it was very important for Dumbledore to have a little bit of warning in order to organize and protect everyone.

Severus didn't look convinced.

"But as I said, I don't know for sure that a message wouldn't get intercepted. I don't think the Dark Lord has any defenses against Protean-charmed objects, but I cannot be sure," Severus said and began to pace in front of Hermione. Severus stopped after a few moments and shook his head. "It may give some warning ahead of time, but it may not make any difference if we tell them anyway. The attack has probably already begun. And we could get caught. It's not worth the risk."

"You can't mean that," Hermione said, feeling angry tears well up her eyes. Hermione knew the Death Eaters may not even get into Hogwarts, but if they did it was worth it if the warning saved innocent lives.

"No matter what happens, Dumbledore will find a way to keep Potter safe. That's what matters to the War."

Hermione shook her head in disbelief at his coldness to everyone else who might be in danger. Tears rolled down both her cheeks. Hermione's parents were for all purposes gone; all her family in the world now was in Hogwart's. And Severus didn't think it was worth the risk to alert them to a possible deadly attack by the Death Eaters.

Severus looked at her with a questioning look. His eyes went blank for a moment, and Hermione realized what he was doing but couldn't throw up her mental defenses in time.

"I assure you, I do care that others may be harmed. But if we give ourselves away, that will take away one of the Order's few advantages. And we will undoubtedly die very slow, painful, hellish deaths," Severus said much more calmly.

Hermione wiped the tears from her face, but kept a fierce look of determination. She got up from the bed and stood in front of Severus. She grabbed his hand and before he could pull it away, placed the galleon in it but kept her hand over it as well.

"I believe from the look in your eyes that you think Hogwart's defenses may fail. If you believe that, then you know that every child and adult in there is in mortal damage. And as much faith as you rightfully put in Dumbledore, what if something happens so that he can't protect Harry? Or what happens when everyone is slaughtered, and we're still left standing here? Could you live with that?" Hermione said as evenly as she could.

Severus tried to retract his hand but Hermione grabbed it and pulled up his sleeve, revealing his Dark Mark.

"The Severus who gladly accepted this Mark would probably keep himself safe and allow others to potentially die. Is that who you are now?" Hermione pushed.

Severus growled and wrenched his arm from her grasp. He grabbed her by the throat and pushed her into the wall. His eyes were burning bright. He was livid. No words could come from his mouth. Hermione fought for breath and felt she was in mortal danger, but clearly she had gotten to him. After a few moments he was still unable to speak and he hadn't relaxed his grip. She dropped the galleon to claw at his hands to fight for her breath, but he was too strong.

As a last resort she muttered 'Legilimens' and ventured into Severus' momentarily unguarded and enraged mind.

Severus was so angry that his vision was blurred and he wasn't even sure what he was doing. How dare someone throw his days as a Death Eater in his face when he had done so much for the Order at such great personal risk and great personal price. A small voice suddenly spoke in his mind.

'Maybe that is who you still are,' Hermione's voice spoke directly in his mind. The words were simple enough but they had an effect. In his blind rage, his vison had been blurred with anger and he had lost himself. The words echoing in his mind were enough to cause him to calm for a moment. As he willed himself to regain some control, the first thing that came back into focus were two small gloved hands clawing at his own much larger hands. He recognized the gloves as the ones he had given Hermione.

Severus snapped out of it. He released his grip and stepped back. Hermione fell spluttering to the ground gasping for breath and clasping her hands to her neck.

Severus looked down at what he had done.

Hermione stayed on the ground, trying to regain her breath without much success. Her brain was starved of oxygen and she was in a slow and confused state.

Severus got down on the ground behind Hermione and pulled her against his chest. She flinched at his touch and tensed up which made it even harder to breathe.

"Please relax," Severus said softly. Hermione paused a moment but tried to relax. He pulled her back so her back was against his chest and he put one hand gently across her throat. Again, Hermione flinched out of pure lingering panic, but he muttered a few words and she felt her throat open back up fully. She gasped in several full sweet breaths of air. Her struggle for air was over, and she relaxed back into his chest.

Severus, ashamed but unsure how he should proceed, wrapped both arms around her to comfort her. The back of her head rested on his right shoulder and he leaned his head to rest on top of hers in a moment of shame of reflection. He hadn't meant to do that. He couldn't believe he could do that.

Hermione had finally gotten enough oxygen to her body and became more aware of herself again. She realized she was on the ground and felt something warm draped all around her. She stole a glance around and realized she was sitting on the ground, leaning against Severus with her back against his chest and his arms around her. She wasn't sure whether she should move. She knew the last comment she made to Severus would anger him, though she wasn't sure how he would react. She figured she needed to take drastic action to make her point, and she was wondering if it had been worth it.

They sat like that for several minutes, both unsure of what the other was thinking or feeling, both unsure of what to do.

Hermione felt Severus' right arm move and she held her breath, not sure what to expect. She looked and saw him summon the galleon which had rolled halfway across the room. It flew to his hand and he looked at it over Hermione's head for a moment. He cupped one of Hermione's hands with his hand and pulled her glove off. He then placed the galleon in her hand, keeping his hand over it as well, the same that Hermione had done before. He moved his head so it was still resting in hers, but now his mouth was just above her ear.

"Presently, I cannot say that is not who I am. My actions just now shook me of the belief that I am not that person anymore. But I can tell you that is not who I desire to be," Severus said slowly and ashamedly, his words and breath washing over her ear. "Send the message."

Hermione paused a moment but then grasped the coin firmly in her hand.

"If You-Know-Who intercepts this, I suppose we would know pretty quickly," Hermione whispered hoarsely, her voice still not recovered. She hinted at the fact that if Voldemort caught them, he would soon be in there to kill or torture them. "Are you sure?"

Severus squeezed her hand in assurance.

Hermione's grip on the coin tightened and she began muttering the charm. The numbers along the edge of the coin, normally the serial number, transformed into a message:

'DEATH EATERS ARE APPROACHING HOGWARTS. DIVERSION FOR AURORS AT MINISTRY. TELL DUMBLEDORE.'

The galleon glowed, and then faded. The message was sent.

Severus put his hand back over her hand with galleon in between. Hermione loosened her grip to allow the galleon to drop, leaving nothing between them.

* * *

Harry awoke as a glowing light teased his eyelids. He tried to ignore it but it only intensified. He finally sat up and looked around the dormitory. His eyes fell upon his bedside table where something was glowing. Rubbing sleep from his eyes he finally picked up. He saw it was his galleon from the DA.

Harry immediately found it odd; no one had used it since fifth ear. He turned the galleon to look at the edge for the message. As he read it, his heart stopped. He then remembered Hermione was the only one good at sending messages through the galleons. He leapt from his bed and rooted through a drawer until he found the Marauder's Map. He quickly scanned it and saw that neither Hermione nor Snape were on the grounds.

Harry's scrambling woke Ron up.

"What're you doing, Harry?" Ron yawned annoyedly.

"Read," Harry said, tossing the galleon to Ron as he grabbed his wand and his robe.

"Is this for real?" Ron asked, suddenly awake.

"I think so. Also, Hermione and Snape are gone from the grounds. So I don't know what's going on," Harry said. "Do you still have your galleon?"

Ron quickly rooted through his things, finally producing a glowing galleon. "Yeah, same on mine."

"Let's go. We have to find Dumbledore," Harry said with urgency. Ron grabbed his wand and robe and they ran down to the Common Room and out the portrait.

* * *

At least a minute had passed, but nothing had happened. Hermione stopped holding her breath. Severus squeezed her hand. He wasn't sure they were safe yet.

Hermione didn't know how to wrap her mind away what had just happened. All she knew was that despite what he had just done, she had never as secure as she did in that moment in his arms.

She pulled her hand from his and turned around to face him. He pulled back suddenly. Hermione was momentarily hurt, thinking he was drawing back from her purposefully, but she saw he was actually just uneasy. She realized he considered himself at her mercy at the moment.

Hermione leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips. He didn't pull back so Hermione pushed her lips on his again. Hermione was surprised when he reciprocated and held her face with his hands. She put her hand around the back of his neck and let her body rest on his. She wasn't sure what she was doing, but it felt right.

After a few moments, Severus did pull back. Hermione felt very unsure and awkward for a moment. He cupped her jaw with one hand and looked her in the eye. His eyes were darkened with remorse… and something else.

"I'm sorry for what I did. Words cannot-"

"I forgive you," Hermione breathed and pushed her lips on his again. She knew this was probably not a good idea, but she wanted him. She knew anyone else would say she was crazy, especially after what he had done only minutes before, but she felt like she saw a side of him that no one else had. She had gotten to him.

They were still sitting against the wall so Hermione turned and crawled on his lap to straddle him while deepening the kiss. Severus seemed to resist momentarily but gave in. Hermione lightly moved against his lap as she kissed him and a deep rumbling moan escaped his lips. He moved his mouth to her still tender neck. He very lightly and carefully placed kisses on the bruises on her neck, and then bit down once beyond the bruises. Hermione could feel his erection through his robes and moaned at the feel of it at her crotch and his mouth on her neck.

He carefully picked her up and she kept her legs wrapped around him and her arms around his neck. He didn't walk them to the bed, but to the attached bathroom. He threw open the door with a wave of his hand.

Hermione allowed him to sit her down on the edge of the large bathtub.

"What-" Hermione began, frustrated. Her breathing was deep and she was aching.

"I want to heal you," he said and reached in the cabinet under the sink. He grabbed a bottle and kneeled on the ground before Hermione. He lightly and carefully rubbed some kind of bruise salve on her neck and she felt the soreness disappear. Hermione felt a rush of emotion. His eyes were dark with lust, but he still attended to her wounds first.

Severus fumbled with the cap to the bottle, too distracted to handle to small cap so Hermione grabbed the bottle and through it out of the bathroom. Their lips were attached again before the bottle smashed against the wall in the main chamber.

He was still kneeling down and between her where she sat on the tub. Not breaking the kiss, he pulled her blouse off and while nibbling on her ear, removed her bra as well. He took a moment to move his mouth down to her nipples and lightly nibbled on each before returning his mouth to hers.

Hermione helped to pull his robes and undershirt off, but stopped as she saw gashes on his arms and shoulders, some leading to his back.

"What-" Hermione began.

"It is nothing, something from earlier," Severus breathed in her ear and raked his teeth over the shell of her ear. Hermione melted, if possible, even more but used all her will power to stop again.

"No, it's not nothing" Hermione said, halting their progression yet again. Their gaze met, both of their eyes darkened with lust

"I want to heal you," Hermione breathed out, echoing his words. Severus hung his head, partially out of hesitation and partially out of pure self-control. Hermione summoned her wand and motioned for him to turn around. She healed and shrunk the gashes over his back, of which there were many. He turned him again and healed the gashes still left on his arm. As the last gash shrank, Severus grabbed her wand from her hand and through it from the room as Hermione had done with the bottle.

They resumed their kiss with intensity as he pulled his pants the rest of his clothing off. Once he was free of all his garments, Hermione stood and allowed him to slide her jeans down her legs. She was now only in her knickers, standing in front of a kneeling Severus. He bent low and placed a kiss on her shin, then her knee, then her thigh… Hermione moaned as he continued to place kisses on her hips as he removed her knickers. He placed one teasing kiss just above her clit, then kissed all the way up her body as he stood to his full towering height.

Severus looked to the bedroom, but Hermione has something else in mind. She didn't want another experience in that bed. She grabbed Severus' hand and led him into the shower. Following her train of thought, Severus turned on the water with a wave of his hand.

Severus kissed Hermione deeply exploring every crevice of her mouth as they both stood under the hot water, his hand eventually running down her body to her womanhood. He ran his fingers through her folds as if memorizing every inch while rubbing her clit with his thumb. Hermione threw her head back and moaned in pleasure. He then moved one finger in and out of her, then two. Hermione was almost unable to support herself with her legs at the sensation.

When he was sure she was ready, he picked her up and pinned her to the wall of the shower with his body. With the water running over both of them, Severus positioned himself at her entrance and looked her in her eyes to ask if she was ready. She nodded minutely and he pushed slowly inside of her. They moaned simultaneously.

Severus moved his arms to make sure she was supported comfortably and she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him as he moved in and out of her. He moved one hand between them and rubbed her clit slowly. Hermione paused the kiss and moaned into his mouth, driving him wild.

He put one arm against the wall of the shower above where he pinned Hermione and again moved his mouth to her neck. He bit down and sucked lightly, then a little harder. Hermione gasped and moaned, and dug her nails into his shoulder. All of Hermione's skin was on fire and she was overwhelmed by the intensity. He removed his mouth from her neck and their eyes met.

The eye contact was almost overwhelming. They were staring into each other while doing such a primal act. At first Hermione wanted to look away, but seeing the burning look in his eyes only made her want him more.

She savored every sensation and sound. All organized thoughts soon left her mind as the tension grew within her and she could feel the pleasure building up. She dug her nails in his back as she felt it coming; he moved in her two more times before waves of pleasure overtook her, making her toes curl. She threw her head back and cried out. Her walls clamping down around him brought Severus to climax and he spilled into her, resting his mouth at her neck.

They both relaxed and Severus withdrew from Hermione, leaving her feeling empty but he still held her against the shower wall. Hermione grew nervous. Severus could easily decide that this was a mistake and make this difficult and awkward. And what were they doing?

"I can't promise not to make this difficult, and I don't know what the hell we are doing," Severus whispered in her ear before kissing her. Hermione made a mental note to be better about Occlumency.

* * *

**Whew! Let me know what you think. **


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